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diff --git a/.gitattributes b/.gitattributes new file mode 100644 index 0000000..6833f05 --- /dev/null +++ b/.gitattributes @@ -0,0 +1,3 @@ +* text=auto +*.txt text +*.md text diff --git a/552-h.zip b/552-h.zip Binary files differnew file mode 100644 index 0000000..33d311a --- /dev/null +++ b/552-h.zip diff --git a/552-h/552-h.htm b/552-h/552-h.htm new file mode 100644 index 0000000..8667745 --- /dev/null +++ b/552-h/552-h.htm @@ -0,0 +1,4840 @@ +<!DOCTYPE HTML PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD HTML 4.01 Transitional//EN"> +<HTML> +<HEAD> + +<META HTTP-EQUIV="Content-Type" CONTENT="text/html; charset=iso-8859-1"> + +<TITLE> +The Project Gutenberg E-text of The People that Time Forgot, by Edgar Rice Burroughs +</TITLE> + +<STYLE TYPE="text/css"> +BODY { color: Black; + background: White; + margin-right: 10%; + margin-left: 10%; + font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; + text-align: justify } + +P {text-indent: 4% } + +P.noindent {text-indent: 0% } + +P.poem {text-indent: 0%; + margin-left: 10%; + font-size: small } + +P.letter {font-size: small ; + margin-left: 10% ; + margin-right: 10% } + +P.finis { text-align: center ; + text-indent: 0% ; + margin-left: 0% ; + margin-right: 0% } + +</STYLE> + +</HEAD> + +<BODY> + + +<pre> + +Project Gutenberg's The People that Time Forgot, by Edgar Rice Burroughs + +This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with +almost no restrictions whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or +re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included +with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org + + +Title: The People that Time Forgot + +Author: Edgar Rice Burroughs + +Posting Date: July 30, 2008 [EBook #552] +Release Date: June, 1996 +[Last updated: February 2, 2014] + +Language: English + +Character set encoding: ISO-8859-1 + +*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE PEOPLE THAT TIME FORGOT *** + + + + +Produced by Judith Boss. HTML version by Al Haines. + + + + + +</pre> + + +<BR><BR> + +<H1 ALIGN="center"> +The People That Time Forgot +</H1> + +<BR> + +<H3 ALIGN="center"> +By +</H3> + +<H2 ALIGN="center"> +Edgar Rice Burroughs +</H2> + +<BR><BR><BR> + +<H2 ALIGN="center"> +Contents +</H2> + +<TABLE ALIGN="center" WIDTH="80%"> +<TR> +<TD ALIGN="left" VALIGN="top" WIDTH="25%"> +<A HREF="#chap01">CHAPTER 1</A> +</TD> +<TD ALIGN="left" VALIGN="top" WIDTH="25%"> +<A HREF="#chap02">CHAPTER 2</A> +</TD> +<TD ALIGN="left" VALIGN="top" WIDTH="25%"> +<A HREF="#chap03">CHAPTER 3</A> +</TD> +<TD ALIGN="left" VALIGN="top" WIDTH="25%"> +<A HREF="#chap04">CHAPTER 4</A> +</TD> +</TR> + +<TR> +<TD ALIGN="left" VALIGN="top"> +<A HREF="#chap05">CHAPTER 5</A> +</TD> +<TD ALIGN="left" VALIGN="top"> +<A HREF="#chap06">CHAPTER 6</A> +</TD> +<TD ALIGN="left" VALIGN="top"> +<A HREF="#chap07">CHAPTER 7</A> +</TD> +<TD ALIGN="left" VALIGN="top"> </TD> +</TR> + +</TABLE> + +<BR><BR><BR> + +<A NAME="chap01"></A> +<H3 ALIGN="center"> +Chapter 1 +</H3> + +<P> +I am forced to admit that even though I had traveled a long distance to +place Bowen Tyler's manuscript in the hands of his father, I was still +a trifle skeptical as to its sincerity, since I could not but recall +that it had not been many years since Bowen had been one of the most +notorious practical jokers of his alma mater. The truth was that as I +sat in the Tyler library at Santa Monica I commenced to feel a trifle +foolish and to wish that I had merely forwarded the manuscript by +express instead of bearing it personally, for I confess that I do not +enjoy being laughed at. I have a well-developed sense of humor—when +the joke is not on me. +</P> + +<P> +Mr. Tyler, Sr., was expected almost hourly. The last steamer in from +Honolulu had brought information of the date of the expected sailing of +his yacht <i>Toreador</i>, which was now twenty-four hours overdue. Mr. +Tyler's assistant secretary, who had been left at home, assured me that +there was no doubt but that the <i>Toreador</i> had sailed as promised, since +he knew his employer well enough to be positive that nothing short of +an act of God would prevent his doing what he had planned to do. I was +also aware of the fact that the sending apparatus of the <i>Toreador</i>'s +wireless equipment was sealed, and that it would only be used in event +of dire necessity. There was, therefore, nothing to do but wait, and +we waited. +</P> + +<P> +We discussed the manuscript and hazarded guesses concerning it and the +strange events it narrated. The torpedoing of the liner upon which +Bowen J. Tyler, Jr., had taken passage for France to join the American +Ambulance was a well-known fact, and I had further substantiated by +wire to the New York office of the owners, that a Miss La Rue had been +booked for passage. Further, neither she nor Bowen had been mentioned +among the list of survivors; nor had the body of either of them been +recovered. +</P> + +<P> +Their rescue by the English tug was entirely probable; the capture of +the enemy <i>U-33</i> by the tug's crew was not beyond the range of +possibility; and their adventures during the perilous cruise which the +treachery and deceit of Benson extended until they found themselves in +the waters of the far South Pacific with depleted stores and poisoned +water-casks, while bordering upon the fantastic, appeared logical +enough as narrated, event by event, in the manuscript. +</P> + +<P> +Caprona has always been considered a more or less mythical land, though +it is vouched for by an eminent navigator of the eighteenth century; +but Bowen's narrative made it seem very real, however many miles of +trackless ocean lay between us and it. Yes, the narrative had us +guessing. We were agreed that it was most improbable; but neither of +us could say that anything which it contained was beyond the range of +possibility. The weird flora and fauna of Caspak were as possible +under the thick, warm atmospheric conditions of the super-heated crater +as they were in the Mesozoic era under almost exactly similar +conditions, which were then probably world-wide. The assistant +secretary had heard of Caproni and his discoveries, but admitted that +he never had taken much stock in the one nor the other. We were agreed +that the one statement most difficult of explanation was that which +reported the entire absence of human young among the various tribes +with which Tyler had had intercourse. This was the one irreconcilable +statement of the manuscript. A world of adults! It was impossible. +</P> + +<P> +We speculated upon the probable fate of Bradley and his party of +English sailors. Tyler had found the graves of two of them; how many +more might have perished! And Miss La Rue—could a young girl long +have survived the horrors of Caspak after having been separated from +all of her own kind? The assistant secretary wondered if Nobs still +was with her, and then we both smiled at this tacit acceptance of the +truth of the whole uncanny tale: +</P> + +<P> +"I suppose I'm a fool," remarked the assistant secretary; "but by +George, I can't help believing it, and I can see that girl now, with +the big Airedale at her side protecting her from the terrors of a +million years ago. I can visualize the entire scene—the apelike +Grimaldi men huddled in their filthy caves; the huge pterodactyls +soaring through the heavy air upon their bat-like wings; the mighty +dinosaurs moving their clumsy hulks beneath the dark shadows of +preglacial forests—the dragons which we considered myths until science +taught us that they were the true recollections of the first man, +handed down through countless ages by word of mouth from father to son +out of the unrecorded dawn of humanity." +</P> + +<P> +"It is stupendous—if true," I replied. "And to think that possibly +they are still there—Tyler and Miss La Rue—surrounded by hideous +dangers, and that possibly Bradley still lives, and some of his party! +I can't help hoping all the time that Bowen and the girl have found the +others; the last Bowen knew of them, there were six left, all told—the +mate Bradley, the engineer Olson, and Wilson, Whitely, Brady and +Sinclair. There might be some hope for them if they could join forces; +but separated, I'm afraid they couldn't last long." +</P> + +<P> +"If only they hadn't let the German prisoners capture the <i>U-33</i>! Bowen +should have had better judgment than to have trusted them at all. The +chances are von Schoenvorts succeeded in getting safely back to Kiel +and is strutting around with an Iron Cross this very minute. With a +large supply of oil from the wells they discovered in Caspak, with +plenty of water and ample provisions, there is no reason why they +couldn't have negotiated the submerged tunnel beneath the barrier +cliffs and made good their escape." +</P> + +<P> +"I don't like 'em," said the assistant secretary; "but sometimes you +got to hand it to 'em." +</P> + +<P> +"Yes," I growled, "and there's nothing I'd enjoy more than <i>handing it +to them</i>!" And then the telephone-bell rang. +</P> + +<P> +The assistant secretary answered, and as I watched him, I saw his jaw +drop and his face go white. "My God!" he exclaimed as he hung up the +receiver as one in a trance. "It can't be!" +</P> + +<P> +"What?" I asked. +</P> + +<P> +"Mr. Tyler is dead," he answered in a dull voice. "He died at sea, +suddenly, yesterday." +</P> + +<P> +The next ten days were occupied in burying Mr. Bowen J. Tyler, Sr., and +arranging plans for the succor of his son. Mr. Tom Billings, the late +Mr. Tyler's secretary, did it all. He is force, energy, initiative and +good judgment combined and personified. I never have beheld a more +dynamic young man. He handled lawyers, courts and executors as a +sculptor handles his modeling clay. He formed, fashioned and forced +them to his will. He had been a classmate of Bowen Tyler at college, +and a fraternity brother, and before that he had been an impoverished +and improvident cow-puncher on one of the great Tyler ranches. Tyler, +Sr., had picked him out of thousands of employees and made him; or +rather Tyler had given him the opportunity, and then Billings had made +himself. Tyler, Jr., as good a judge of men as his father, had taken +him into his friendship, and between the two of them they had turned +out a man who would have died for a Tyler as quickly as he would have +for his flag. Yet there was none of the sycophant or fawner in +Billings; ordinarily I do not wax enthusiastic about men, but this man +Billings comes as close to my conception of what a regular man should +be as any I have ever met. I venture to say that before Bowen J. Tyler +sent him to college he had never heard the word <i>ethics</i>, and yet I am +equally sure that in all his life he never has transgressed a single +tenet of the code of ethics of an American gentleman. +</P> + +<P> +Ten days after they brought Mr. Tyler's body off the <i>Toreador</i>, we +steamed out into the Pacific in search of Caprona. There were forty in +the party, including the master and crew of the <i>Toreador</i>; and Billings +the indomitable was in command. We had a long and uninteresting search +for Caprona, for the old map upon which the assistant secretary had +finally located it was most inaccurate. When its grim walls finally +rose out of the ocean's mists before us, we were so far south that it +was a question as to whether we were in the South Pacific or the +Antarctic. Bergs were numerous, and it was very cold. +</P> + +<P> +All during the trip Billings had steadfastly evaded questions as to how +we were to enter Caspak after we had found Caprona. Bowen Tyler's +manuscript had made it perfectly evident to all that the subterranean +outlet of the Caspakian River was the only means of ingress or egress +to the crater world beyond the impregnable cliffs. Tyler's party had +been able to navigate this channel because their craft had been a +submarine; but the <i>Toreador</i> could as easily have flown over the cliffs +as sailed under them. Jimmy Hollis and Colin Short whiled away many an +hour inventing schemes for surmounting the obstacle presented by the +barrier cliffs, and making ridiculous wagers as to which one Tom +Billings had in mind; but immediately we were all assured that we had +raised Caprona, Billings called us together. +</P> + +<P> +"There was no use in talking about these things," he said, "until we +found the island. At best it can be but conjecture on our part until +we have been able to scrutinize the coast closely. Each of us has +formed a mental picture of the Capronian seacoast from Bowen's +manuscript, and it is not likely that any two of these pictures +resemble each other, or that any of them resemble the coast as we shall +presently find it. I have in view three plans for scaling the cliffs, +and the means for carrying out each is in the hold. There is an +electric drill with plenty of waterproof cable to reach from the ship's +dynamos to the cliff-top when the <i>Toreador</i> is anchored at a safe +distance from shore, and there is sufficient half-inch iron rod to +build a ladder from the base to the top of the cliff. It would be a +long, arduous and dangerous work to bore the holes and insert the rungs +of the ladder from the bottom upward; yet it can be done. +</P> + +<P> +"I also have a life-saving mortar with which we might be able to throw +a line over the summit of the cliffs; but this plan would necessitate +one of us climbing to the top with the chances more than even that the +line would cut at the summit, or the hooks at the upper end would slip. +</P> + +<P> +"My third plan seems to me the most feasible. You all saw a number of +large, heavy boxes lowered into the hold before we sailed. I know you +did, because you asked me what they contained and commented upon the +large letter '<i>H</i>' which was painted upon each box. These boxes contain +the various parts of a hydro-aeroplane. I purpose assembling this upon +the strip of beach described in Bowen's manuscript—the beach where he +found the dead body of the apelike man—provided there is sufficient +space above high water; otherwise we shall have to assemble it on deck +and lower it over the side. After it is assembled, I shall carry +tackle and ropes to the cliff-top, and then it will be comparatively +simple to hoist the search-party and its supplies in safety. Or I can +make a sufficient number of trips to land the entire party in the +valley beyond the barrier; all will depend, of course, upon what my +first reconnaissance reveals." +</P> + +<P> +That afternoon we steamed slowly along the face of Caprona's towering +barrier. +</P> + +<P> +"You see now," remarked Billings as we craned our necks to scan the +summit thousands of feet above us, "how futile it would have been to +waste our time in working out details of a plan to surmount those." And +he jerked his thumb toward the cliffs. "It would take weeks, possibly +months, to construct a ladder to the top. I had no conception of their +formidable height. Our mortar would not carry a line halfway to the +crest of the lowest point. There is no use discussing any plan other +than the hydro-aeroplane. We'll find the beach and get busy." +</P> + +<P> +Late the following morning the lookout announced that he could discern +surf about a mile ahead; and as we approached, we all saw the line of +breakers broken by a long sweep of rolling surf upon a narrow beach. +The launch was lowered, and five of us made a landing, getting a good +ducking in the ice-cold waters in the doing of it; but we were rewarded +by the finding of the clean-picked bones of what might have been the +skeleton of a high order of ape or a very low order of man, lying close +to the base of the cliff. Billings was satisfied, as were the rest of +us, that this was the beach mentioned by Bowen, and we further found +that there was ample room to assemble the sea-plane. +</P> + +<P> +Billings, having arrived at a decision, lost no time in acting, with +the result that before mid-afternoon we had landed all the large boxes +marked "H" upon the beach, and were busily engaged in opening them. +Two days later the plane was assembled and tuned. We loaded tackles +and ropes, water, food and ammunition in it, and then we each implored +Billings to let us be the one to accompany him. But he would take no +one. That was Billings; if there was any especially difficult or +dangerous work to be done, that one man could do, Billings always did +it himself. If he needed assistance, he never called for +volunteers—just selected the man or men he considered best qualified +for the duty. He said that he considered the principles underlying all +volunteer service fundamentally wrong, and that it seemed to him that +calling for volunteers reflected upon the courage and loyalty of the +entire command. +</P> + +<P> +We rolled the plane down to the water's edge, and Billings mounted the +pilot's seat. There was a moment's delay as he assured himself that he +had everything necessary. Jimmy Hollis went over his armament and +ammunition to see that nothing had been omitted. Besides pistol and +rifle, there was the machine-gun mounted in front of him on the plane, +and ammunition for all three. Bowen's account of the terrors of Caspak +had impressed us all with the necessity for proper means of defense. +</P> + +<P> +At last all was ready. The motor was started, and we pushed the plane +out into the surf. A moment later, and she was skimming seaward. +Gently she rose from the surface of the water, executed a wide spiral +as she mounted rapidly, circled once far above us and then disappeared +over the crest of the cliffs. We all stood silent and expectant, our +eyes glued upon the towering summit above us. Hollis, who was now in +command, consulted his wrist-watch at frequent intervals. +</P> + +<P> +"Gad," exclaimed Short, "we ought to be hearing from him pretty soon!" +</P> + +<P> +Hollis laughed nervously. "He's been gone only ten minutes," he +announced. +</P> + +<P> +"Seems like an hour," snapped Short. "What's that? Did you hear that? +He's firing! It's the machine-gun! Oh, Lord; and here we are as +helpless as a lot of old ladies ten thousand miles away! We can't do a +thing. We don't know what's happening. Why didn't he let one of us go +with him?" +</P> + +<P> +Yes, it was the machine-gun. We would hear it distinctly for at least +a minute. Then came silence. That was two weeks ago. We have had no +sign nor signal from Tom Billings since. +</P> + +<BR><BR><BR> + +<A NAME="chap02"></A> +<H3 ALIGN="center"> +Chapter 2 +</H3> + +<P> +I'll never forget my first impressions of Caspak as I circled in, high +over the surrounding cliffs. From the plane I looked down through a +mist upon the blurred landscape beneath me. The hot, humid atmosphere +of Caspak condenses as it is fanned by the cold Antarctic air-currents +which sweep across the crater's top, sending a tenuous ribbon of vapor +far out across the Pacific. Through this the picture gave one the +suggestion of a colossal impressionistic canvas in greens and browns +and scarlets and yellows surrounding the deep blue of the inland +sea—just blobs of color taking form through the tumbling mist. +</P> + +<P> +I dived close to the cliffs and skirted them for several miles without +finding the least indication of a suitable landing-place; and then I +swung back at a lower level, looking for a clearing close to the bottom +of the mighty escarpment; but I could find none of sufficient area to +insure safety. I was flying pretty low by this time, not only looking +for landing places but watching the myriad life beneath me. I was down +pretty well toward the south end of the island, where an arm of the +lake reaches far inland, and I could see the surface of the water +literally black with creatures of some sort. I was too far up to +recognize individuals, but the general impression was of a vast army of +amphibious monsters. The land was almost equally alive with crawling, +leaping, running, flying things. It was one of the latter which nearly +did for me while my attention was fixed upon the weird scene below. +</P> + +<P> +The first intimation I had of it was the sudden blotting out of the +sunlight from above, and as I glanced quickly up, I saw a most terrific +creature swooping down upon me. It must have been fully eighty feet +long from the end of its long, hideous beak to the tip of its thick, +short tail, with an equal spread of wings. It was coming straight for +me and hissing frightfully—I could hear it above the whir of the +propeller. It was coming straight down toward the muzzle of the +machine-gun and I let it have it right in the breast; but still it came +for me, so that I had to dive and turn, though I was dangerously close +to earth. +</P> + +<P> +The thing didn't miss me by a dozen feet, and when I rose, it wheeled +and followed me, but only to the cooler air close to the level of the +cliff-tops; there it turned again and dropped. Something—man's +natural love of battle and the chase, I presume—impelled me to pursue +it, and so I too circled and dived. The moment I came down into the +warm atmosphere of Caspak, the creature came for me again, rising above +me so that it might swoop down upon me. Nothing could better have +suited my armament, since my machine-gun was pointed upward at an angle +of about 45° and could not be either depressed or elevated by the +pilot. If I had brought someone along with me, we could have raked the +great reptile from almost any position, but as the creature's mode of +attack was always from above, he always found me ready with a hail of +bullets. The battle must have lasted a minute or more before the thing +suddenly turned completely over in the air and fell to the ground. +</P> + +<P> +Bowen and I roomed together at college, and I learned a lot from him +outside my regular course. He was a pretty good scholar despite his +love of fun, and his particular hobby was paleontology. He used to +tell me about the various forms of animal and vegetable life which had +covered the globe during former eras, and so I was pretty well +acquainted with the fishes, amphibians, reptiles, and mammals of +paleolithic times. I knew that the thing that had attacked me was some +sort of pterodactyl which should have been extinct millions of years +ago. It was all that I needed to realize that Bowen had exaggerated +nothing in his manuscript. +</P> + +<P> +Having disposed of my first foe, I set myself once more to search for a +landing-place near to the base of the cliffs beyond which my party +awaited me. I knew how anxious they would be for word from me, and I +was equally anxious to relieve their minds and also to get them and our +supplies well within Caspak, so that we might set off about our +business of finding and rescuing Bowen Tyler; but the pterodactyl's +carcass had scarcely fallen before I was surrounded by at least a dozen +of the hideous things, some large, some small, but all bent upon my +destruction. I could not cope with them all, and so I rose rapidly +from among them to the cooler strata wherein they dared not follow; and +then I recalled that Bowen's narrative distinctly indicated that the +farther north one traveled in Caspak, the fewer were the terrible +reptiles which rendered human life impossible at the southern end of +the island. +</P> + +<P> +There seemed nothing now but to search out a more northerly +landing-place and then return to the <i>Toreador</i> and transport my +companions, two by two, over the cliffs and deposit them at the +rendezvous. As I flew north, the temptation to explore overcame me. I +knew that I could easily cover Caspak and return to the beach with less +petrol than I had in my tanks; and there was the hope, too, that I +might find Bowen or some of his party. The broad expanse of the inland +sea lured me out over its waters, and as I crossed, I saw at either +extremity of the great body of water an island—one to the south and +one to the north; but I did not alter my course to examine either +closely, leaving that to a later time. +</P> + +<P> +The further shore of the sea revealed a much narrower strip of land +between the cliffs and the water than upon the western side; but it was +a hillier and more open country. There were splendid landing-places, +and in the distance, toward the north, I thought I descried a village; +but of that I was not positive. However, as I approached the land, I +saw a number of human figures apparently pursuing one who fled across a +broad expanse of meadow. As I dropped lower to have a better look at +these people, they caught the whirring of my propellers and looked +aloft. They paused an instant—pursuers and pursued; and then they +broke and raced for the shelter of the nearest wood. Almost +instantaneously a huge bulk swooped down upon me, and as I looked up, I +realized that there were flying reptiles even in this part of Caspak. +The creature dived for my right wing so quickly that nothing but a +sheer drop could have saved me. I was already close to the ground, so +that my maneuver was extremely dangerous; but I was in a fair way of +making it successfully when I saw that I was too closely approaching a +large tree. My effort to dodge the tree and the pterodactyl at the +same time resulted disastrously. One wing touched an upper branch; the +plane tipped and swung around, and then, out of control, dashed into +the branches of the tree, where it came to rest, battered and torn, +forty feet above the ground. +</P> + +<P> +Hissing loudly, the huge reptile swept close above the tree in which my +plane had lodged, circled twice over me and then flapped away toward +the south. As I guessed then and was to learn later, forests are the +surest sanctuary from these hideous creatures, which, with their +enormous spread of wing and their great weight, are as much out of +place among trees as is a seaplane. +</P> + +<P> +For a minute or so I clung there to my battered flyer, now useless +beyond redemption, my brain numbed by the frightful catastrophe that +had befallen me. All my plans for the succor of Bowen and Miss La Rue +had depended upon this craft, and in a few brief minutes my own selfish +love of adventure had wrecked their hopes and mine. And what effect it +might have upon the future of the balance of the rescuing expedition I +could not even guess. Their lives, too, might be sacrificed to my +suicidal foolishness. That I was doomed seemed inevitable; but I can +honestly say that the fate of my friends concerned me more greatly than +did my own. +</P> + +<P> +Beyond the barrier cliffs my party was even now nervously awaiting my +return. Presently apprehension and fear would claim them—and they +would never know! They would attempt to scale the cliffs—of that I +was sure; but I was not so positive that they would succeed; and after +a while they would turn back, what there were left of them, and go +sadly and mournfully upon their return journey to home. Home! I set +my jaws and tried to forget the word, for I knew that I should never +again see home. +</P> + +<P> +And what of Bowen and his girl? I had doomed them too. They would +never even know that an attempt had been made to rescue them. If they +still lived, they might some day come upon the ruined remnants of this +great plane hanging in its lofty sepulcher and hazard vain guesses and +be filled with wonder; but they would never know; and I could not but +be glad that they would not know that Tom Billings had sealed their +death-warrants by his criminal selfishness. +</P> + +<P> +All these useless regrets were getting me in a bad way; but at last I +shook myself and tried to put such things out of my mind and take hold +of conditions as they existed and do my level best to wrest victory +from defeat. I was badly shaken up and bruised, but considered myself +mighty lucky to escape with my life. The plane hung at a precarious +angle, so that it was with difficulty and considerable danger that I +climbed from it into the tree and then to the ground. +</P> + +<P> +My predicament was grave. Between me and my friends lay an inland sea +fully sixty miles wide at this point and an estimated land-distance of +some three hundred miles around the northern end of the sea, through +such hideous dangers as I am perfectly free to admit had me pretty well +buffaloed. I had seen quite enough of Caspak this day to assure me +that Bowen had in no way exaggerated its perils. As a matter of fact, +I am inclined to believe that he had become so accustomed to them +before he started upon his manuscript that he rather slighted them. As +I stood there beneath that tree—a tree which should have been part of +a coal-bed countless ages since—and looked out across a sea teeming +with frightful life—life which should have been fossil before God +conceived of Adam—I would not have given a minim of stale beer for my +chances of ever seeing my friends or the outside world again; yet then +and there I swore to fight my way as far through this hideous land as +circumstances would permit. I had plenty of ammunition, an automatic +pistol and a heavy rifle—the latter one of twenty added to our +equipment on the strength of Bowen's description of the huge beasts of +prey which ravaged Caspak. My greatest danger lay in the hideous +reptilia whose low nervous organizations permitted their carnivorous +instincts to function for several minutes after they had ceased to live. +</P> + +<P> +But to these things I gave less thought than to the sudden frustration +of all our plans. With the bitterest of thoughts I condemned myself +for the foolish weakness that had permitted me to be drawn from the +main object of my flight into premature and useless exploration. It +seemed to me then that I must be totally eliminated from further search +for Bowen, since, as I estimated it, the three hundred miles of +Caspakian territory I must traverse to reach the base of the cliffs +beyond which my party awaited me were practically impassable for a +single individual unaccustomed to Caspakian life and ignorant of all +that lay before him. Yet I could not give up hope entirely. My duty +lay clear before me; I must follow it while life remained to me, and so +I set forth toward the north. +</P> + +<P> +The country through which I took my way was as lovely as it was +unusual—I had almost said unearthly, for the plants, the trees, the +blooms were not of the earth that I knew. They were larger, the colors +more brilliant and the shapes startling, some almost to grotesqueness, +though even such added to the charm and romance of the landscape as the +giant cacti render weirdly beautiful the waste spots of the sad Mohave. +And over all the sun shone huge and round and red, a monster sun above +a monstrous world, its light dispersed by the humid air of Caspak—the +warm, moist air which lies sluggish upon the breast of this great +mother of life, Nature's mightiest incubator. +</P> + +<P> +All about me, in every direction, was life. It moved through the +tree-tops and among the boles; it displayed itself in widening and +intermingling circles upon the bosom of the sea; it leaped from the +depths; I could hear it in a dense wood at my right, the murmur of it +rising and falling in ceaseless volumes of sound, riven at intervals by +a horrid scream or a thunderous roar which shook the earth; and always +I was haunted by that inexplicable sensation that unseen eyes were +watching me, that soundless feet dogged my trail. I am neither nervous +nor highstrung; but the burden of responsibility upon me weighed +heavily, so that I was more cautious than is my wont. I turned often +to right and left and rear lest I be surprised, and I carried my rifle +at the ready in my hand. Once I could have sworn that among the many +creatures dimly perceived amidst the shadows of the wood I saw a human +figure dart from one cover to another, but I could not be sure. +</P> + +<P> +For the most part I skirted the wood, making occasional detours rather +than enter those forbidding depths of gloom, though many times I was +forced to pass through arms of the forest which extended to the very +shore of the inland sea. There was so sinister a suggestion in the +uncouth sounds and the vague glimpses of moving things within the +forest, of the menace of strange beasts and possibly still stranger +men, that I always breathed more freely when I had passed once more +into open country. +</P> + +<P> +I had traveled northward for perhaps an hour, still haunted by the +conviction that I was being stalked by some creature which kept always +hidden among the trees and shrubbery to my right and a little to my +rear, when for the hundredth time I was attracted by a sound from that +direction, and turning, saw some animal running rapidly through the +forest toward me. There was no longer any effort on its part at +concealment; it came on through the underbrush swiftly, and I was +confident that whatever it was, it had finally gathered the courage to +charge me boldly. Before it finally broke into plain view, I became +aware that it was not alone, for a few yards in its rear a second thing +thrashed through the leafy jungle. Evidently I was to be attacked in +force by a pair of hunting beasts or men. +</P> + +<P> +And then through the last clump of waving ferns broke the figure of the +foremost creature, which came leaping toward me on light feet as I +stood with my rifle to my shoulder covering the point at which I had +expected it would emerge. I must have looked foolish indeed if my +surprise and consternation were in any way reflected upon my +countenance as I lowered my rifle and gazed incredulous at the lithe +figure of the girl speeding swiftly in my direction. But I did not +have long to stand thus with lowered weapon, for as she came, I saw her +cast an affrighted glance over her shoulder, and at the same moment +there broke from the jungle at the same spot at which I had seen her, +the hugest cat I had ever looked upon. +</P> + +<P> +At first I took the beast for a saber-tooth tiger, as it was quite the +most fearsome-appearing beast one could imagine; but it was not that +dread monster of the past, though quite formidable enough to satisfy +the most fastidious thrill-hunter. On it came, grim and terrible, its +baleful eyes glaring above its distended jaws, its lips curled in a +frightful snarl which exposed a whole mouthful of formidable teeth. At +sight of me it had abandoned its impetuous rush and was now sneaking +slowly toward us; while the girl, a long knife in her hand, took her +stand bravely at my left and a little to my rear. She had called +something to me in a strange tongue as she raced toward me, and now she +spoke again; but what she said I could not then, of course, know—only +that her tones were sweet, well modulated and free from any suggestion +of panic. +</P> + +<P> +Facing the huge cat, which I now saw was an enormous panther, I waited +until I could place a shot where I felt it would do the most good, for +at best a frontal shot at any of the large carnivora is a ticklish +matter. I had some advantage in that the beast was not charging; its +head was held low and its back exposed; and so at forty yards I took +careful aim at its spine at the junction of neck and shoulders. But at +the same instant, as though sensing my intention, the great creature +lifted its head and leaped forward in full charge. To fire at that +sloping forehead I knew would be worse than useless, and so I quickly +shifted my aim and pulled the trigger, hoping against hope that the +soft-nosed bullet and the heavy charge of powder would have sufficient +stopping effect to give me time to place a second shot. +</P> + +<P> +In answer to the report of the rifle I had the satisfaction of seeing +the brute spring into the air, turning a complete somersault; but it +was up again almost instantly, though in the brief second that it took +it to scramble to its feet and get its bearings, it exposed its left +side fully toward me, and a second bullet went crashing through its +heart. Down it went for the second time—and then up and at me. The +vitality of these creatures of Caspak is one of the marvelous features +of this strange world and bespeaks the low nervous organization of the +old paleolithic life which has been so long extinct in other portions +of the world. +</P> + +<P> +I put a third bullet into the beast at three paces, and then I thought +that I was done for; but it rolled over and stopped at my feet, stone +dead. I found that my second bullet had torn its heart almost +completely away, and yet it had lived to charge ferociously upon me, +and but for my third shot would doubtless have slain me before it +finally expired—or as Bowen Tyler so quaintly puts it, before it knew +that it was dead. +</P> + +<P> +With the panther quite evidently conscious of the fact that dissolution +had overtaken it, I turned toward the girl, who was regarding me with +evident admiration and not a little awe, though I must admit that my +rifle claimed quite as much of her attention as did I. She was quite +the most wonderful animal that I have ever looked upon, and what few of +her charms her apparel hid, it quite effectively succeeded in +accentuating. A bit of soft, undressed leather was caught over her +left shoulder and beneath her right breast, falling upon her left side +to her hip and upon the right to a metal band which encircled her leg +above the knee and to which the lowest point of the hide was attached. +About her waist was a loose leather belt, to the center of which was +attached the scabbard belonging to her knife. There was a single +armlet between her right shoulder and elbow, and a series of them +covered her left forearm from elbow to wrist. These, I learned later, +answered the purpose of a shield against knife attack when the left arm +is raised in guard across the breast or face. +</P> + +<P> +Her masses of heavy hair were held in place by a broad metal band which +bore a large triangular ornament directly in the center of her +forehead. This ornament appeared to be a huge turquoise, while the +metal of all her ornaments was beaten, virgin gold, inlaid in intricate +design with bits of mother-of-pearl and tiny pieces of stone of various +colors. From the left shoulder depended a leopard's tail, while her +feet were shod with sturdy little sandals. The knife was her only +weapon. Its blade was of iron, the grip was wound with hide and +protected by a guard of three out-bowing strips of flat iron, and upon +the top of the hilt was a knob of gold. +</P> + +<P> +I took in much of this in the few seconds during which we stood facing +each other, and I also observed another salient feature of her +appearance: she was frightfully dirty! Her face and limbs and garment +were streaked with mud and perspiration, and yet even so, I felt that I +had never looked upon so perfect and beautiful a creature as she. Her +figure beggars description, and equally so, her face. Were I one of +these writer-fellows, I should probably say that her features were +Grecian, but being neither a writer nor a poet I can do her greater +justice by saying that she combined all of the finest lines that one +sees in the typical American girl's face rather than the pronounced +sheeplike physiognomy of the Greek goddess. No, even the dirt couldn't +hide that fact; she was beautiful beyond compare. +</P> + +<P> +As we stood looking at each other, a slow smile came to her face, +parting her symmetrical lips and disclosing a row of strong white teeth. +</P> + +<P> +"Galu?" she asked with rising inflection. +</P> + +<P> +And remembering that I read in Bowen's manuscript that Galu seemed to +indicate a higher type of man, I answered by pointing to myself and +repeating the word. Then she started off on a regular catechism, if I +could judge by her inflection, for I certainly understood no word of +what she said. All the time the girl kept glancing toward the forest, +and at last she touched my arm and pointed in that direction. +</P> + +<P> +Turning, I saw a hairy figure of a manlike thing standing watching us, +and presently another and another emerged from the jungle and joined +the leader until there must have been at least twenty of them. They +were entirely naked. Their bodies were covered with hair, and though +they stood upon their feet without touching their hands to the ground, +they had a very ape-like appearance, since they stooped forward and had +very long arms and quite apish features. They were not pretty to look +upon with their close-set eyes, flat noses, long upper lips and +protruding yellow fangs. +</P> + +<P> +"<i>Alus</i>!" said the girl. +</P> + +<P> +I had reread Bowen's adventures so often that I knew them almost by +heart, and so now I knew that I was looking upon the last remnant of +that ancient man-race—the Alus of a forgotten period—the speechless +man of antiquity. +</P> + +<P> +"<i>Kazor</i>!" cried the girl, and at the same moment the Alus came jabbering +toward us. They made strange growling, barking noises, as with much +baring of fangs they advanced upon us. They were armed only with +nature's weapons—powerful muscles and giant fangs; yet I knew that +these were quite sufficient to overcome us had we nothing better to +offer in defense, and so I drew my pistol and fired at the leader. He +dropped like a stone, and the others turned and fled. Once again the +girl smiled her slow smile and stepping closer, caressed the barrel of +my automatic. As she did so, her fingers came in contact with mine, +and a sudden thrill ran through me, which I attributed to the fact that +it had been so long since I had seen a woman of any sort or kind. +</P> + +<P> +She said something to me in her low, liquid tones; but I could not +understand her, and then she pointed toward the north and started away. +I followed her, for my way was north too; but had it been south I still +should have followed, so hungry was I for human companionship in this +world of beasts and reptiles and half-men. +</P> + +<P> +We walked along, the girl talking a great deal and seeming mystified +that I could not understand her. Her silvery laugh rang merrily when I +in turn essayed to speak to her, as though my language was the +quaintest thing she ever had heard. Often after fruitless attempts to +make me understand she would hold her palm toward me, saying, "<i>Galu</i>!" +and then touch my breast or arm and cry, "<i>Alu</i>, <i>alu</i>!" I knew what she +meant, for I had learned from Bowen's narrative the negative gesture +and the two words which she repeated. She meant that I was no Galu, as +I claimed, but an Alu, or speechless one. Yet every time she said this +she laughed again, and so infectious were her tones that I could only +join her. It was only natural, too, that she should be mystified by my +inability to comprehend her or to make her comprehend me, for from the +club-men, the lowest human type in Caspak to have speech, to the golden +race of Galus, the tongues of the various tribes are identical—except +for amplifications in the rising scale of evolution. She, who is a +Galu, can understand one of the Bo-lu and make herself understood to +him, or to a hatchet-man, a spear-man or an archer. The Ho-lus, or +apes, the Alus and myself were the only creatures of human semblance +with which she could hold no converse; yet it was evident that her +intelligence told her that I was neither Ho-lu nor Alu, neither +anthropoid ape nor speechless man. +</P> + +<P> +Yet she did not despair, but set out to teach me her language; and had +it not been that I worried so greatly over the fate of Bowen and my +companions of the <i>Toreador</i>, I could have wished the period of +instruction prolonged. +</P> + +<P> +I never have been what one might call a ladies' man, though I like +their company immensely, and during my college days and since have made +various friends among the sex. I think that I rather appeal to a +certain type of girl for the reason that I never make love to them; I +leave that to the numerous others who do it infinitely better than I +could hope to, and take my pleasure out of girls' society in what seem +to be more rational ways—dancing, golfing, boating, riding, tennis, +and the like. Yet in the company of this half-naked little savage I +found a new pleasure that was entirely distinct from any that I ever +had experienced. When she touched me, I thrilled as I had never before +thrilled in contact with another woman. I could not quite understand +it, for I am sufficiently sophisticated to know that this is a symptom +of love and I certainly did not love this filthy little barbarian with +her broken, unkempt nails and her skin so besmeared with mud and the +green of crushed foliage that it was difficult to say what color it +originally had been. But if she was outwardly uncouth, her clear eyes +and strong white, even teeth, her silvery laugh and her queenly +carriage, bespoke an innate fineness which dirt could not quite +successfully conceal. +</P> + +<P> +The sun was low in the heavens when we came upon a little river which +emptied into a large bay at the foot of low cliffs. Our journey so far +had been beset with constant danger, as is every journey in this +frightful land. I have not bored you with a recital of the wearying +successions of attacks by the multitude of creatures which were +constantly crossing our path or deliberately stalking us. We were +always upon the alert; for here, to paraphrase, eternal vigilance is +indeed the price of life. +</P> + +<P> +I had managed to progress a little in the acquisition of a knowledge of +her tongue, so that I knew many of the animals and reptiles by their +Caspakian names, and trees and ferns and grasses. I knew the words for +<i>sea</i> and <i>river</i> and <i>cliff</i>, for <i>sky</i> and <i>sun</i> and <i>cloud</i>. Yes, I was getting +along finely, and then it occurred to me that I didn't know my +companion's name; so I pointed to myself and said, "Tom," and to her +and raised my eyebrows in interrogation. The girl ran her fingers into +that mass of hair and looked puzzled. I repeated the action a dozen +times. +</P> + +<P> +"Tom," she said finally in that clear, sweet, liquid voice. "Tom!" +</P> + +<P> +I had never thought much of my name before; but when she spoke it, it +sounded to me for the first time in my life like a mighty nice name, +and then she brightened suddenly and tapped her own breast and said: +"Ajor!" +</P> + +<P> +"Ajor!" I repeated, and she laughed and struck her palms together. +</P> + +<P> +Well, we knew each other's names now, and that was some satisfaction. +I rather liked hers—Ajor! And she seemed to like mine, for she +repeated it. +</P> + +<P> +We came to the cliffs beside the little river where it empties into the +bay with the great inland sea beyond. The cliffs were weather-worn and +rotted, and in one place a deep hollow ran back beneath the overhanging +stone for several feet, suggesting shelter for the night. There were +loose rocks strewn all about with which I might build a barricade +across the entrance to the cave, and so I halted there and pointed out +the place to Ajor, trying to make her understand that we would spend +the night there. +</P> + +<P> +As soon as she grasped my meaning, she assented with the Caspakian +equivalent of an affirmative nod, and then touching my rifle, motioned +me to follow her to the river. At the bank she paused, removed her +belt and dagger, dropping them to the ground at her side; then +unfastening the lower edge of her garment from the metal leg-band to +which it was attached, slipped it off her left shoulder and let it drop +to the ground around her feet. It was done so naturally, so simply and +so quickly that it left me gasping like a fish out of water. Turning, +she flashed a smile at me and then dived into the river, and there she +bathed while I stood guard over her. For five or ten minutes she +splashed about, and when she emerged her glistening skin was smooth and +white and beautiful. Without means of drying herself, she simply +ignored what to me would have seemed a necessity, and in a moment was +arrayed in her simple though effective costume. +</P> + +<P> +It was now within an hour of darkness, and as I was nearly famished, I +led the way back about a quarter of a mile to a low meadow where we had +seen antelope and small horses a short time before. Here I brought +down a young buck, the report of my rifle sending the balance of the +herd scampering for the woods, where they were met by a chorus of +hideous roars as the carnivora took advantage of their panic and leaped +among them. +</P> + +<P> +With my hunting-knife I removed a hind-quarter, and then we returned to +camp. Here I gathered a great quantity of wood from fallen trees, Ajor +helping me; but before I built a fire, I also gathered sufficient loose +rock to build my barricade against the frightful terrors of the night +to come. +</P> + +<P> +I shall never forget the expression upon Ajor's face as she saw me +strike a match and light the kindling beneath our camp-fire. It was +such an expression as might transform a mortal face with awe as its +owner beheld the mysterious workings of divinity. It was evident that +Ajor was quite unfamiliar with modern methods of fire-making. She had +thought my rifle and pistol wonderful; but these tiny slivers of wood +which from a magic rub brought flame to the camp hearth were indeed +miracles to her. +</P> + +<P> +As the meat roasted above the fire, Ajor and I tried once again to +talk; but though copiously filled with incentive, gestures and sounds, +the conversation did not flourish notably. And then Ajor took up in +earnest the task of teaching me her language. She commenced, as I +later learned, with the simplest form of speech known to Caspak or for +that matter to the world—that employed by the Bo-lu. I found it far +from difficult, and even though it was a great handicap upon my +instructor that she could not speak my language, she did remarkably +well and demonstrated that she possessed ingenuity and intelligence of +a high order. +</P> + +<P> +After we had eaten, I added to the pile of firewood so that I could +replenish the fire before the entrance to our barricade, believing this +as good a protection against the carnivora as we could have; and then +Ajor and I sat down before it, and the lesson proceeded, while from all +about us came the weird and awesome noises of the Caspakian night—the +moaning and the coughing and roaring of the tigers, the panthers and +the lions, the barking and the dismal howling of a wolf, jackal and +hyaenadon, the shrill shrieks of stricken prey and the hissing of the +great reptiles; the voice of man alone was silent. +</P> + +<P> +But though the voice of this choir-terrible rose and fell from far and +near in all directions, reaching at time such a tremendous volume of +sound that the earth shook to it, yet so engrossed was I in my lesson +and in my teacher that often I was deaf to what at another time would +have filled me with awe. The face and voice of the beautiful girl who +leaned so eagerly toward me as she tried to explain the meaning of some +word or correct my pronunciation of another quite entirely occupied my +every faculty of perception. The firelight shone upon her animated +features and sparkling eyes; it accentuated the graceful motions of her +gesturing arms and hands; it sparkled from her white teeth and from her +golden ornaments, and glistened on the smooth firmness of her perfect +skin. I am afraid that often I was more occupied with admiration of +this beautiful animal than with a desire for knowledge; but be that as +it may, I nevertheless learned much that evening, though part of what I +learned had naught to do with any new language. +</P> + +<P> +Ajor seemed determined that I should speak Caspakian as quickly as +possible, and I thought I saw in her desire a little of that +all-feminine trait which has come down through all the ages from the +first lady of the world—curiosity. Ajor desired that I should speak +her tongue in order that she might satisfy a curiosity concerning me +that was filling her to a point where she was in danger of bursting; of +that I was positive. She was a regular little animated question-mark. +She bubbled over with interrogations which were never to be satisfied +unless I learned to speak her tongue. Her eyes sparkled with +excitement; her hand flew in expressive gestures; her little tongue +raced with time; yet all to no avail. I could say <i>man</i> and <i>tree</i> and +<i>cliff</i> and <i>lion</i> and a number of other words in perfect Caspakian; but +such a vocabulary was only tantalizing; it did not lend itself well to +a very general conversation, and the result was that Ajor would wax so +wroth that she would clench her little fists and beat me on the breast +as hard as ever she could, and then she would sink back laughing as the +humor of the situation captured her. +</P> + +<P> +She was trying to teach me some verbs by going through the actions +herself as she repeated the proper word. We were very much +engrossed—so much so that we were giving no heed to what went on +beyond our cave—when Ajor stopped very suddenly, crying: "<i>Kazor</i>!" Now +she had been trying to teach me that <i>ju</i> meant <i>stop</i>; so when she cried +kazor and at the same time stopped, I thought for a moment that this +was part of my lesson—for the moment I forgot that <i>kazor</i> means <i>beware</i>. +I therefore repeated the word after her; but when I saw the expression +in her eyes as they were directed past me and saw her point toward the +entrance to the cave, I turned quickly—to see a hideous face at the +small aperture leading out into the night. It was the fierce and +snarling countenance of a gigantic bear. I have hunted silvertips in +the White Mountains of Arizona and thought them quite the largest and +most formidable of big game; but from the appearance of the head of +this awful creature I judged that the largest grizzly I had ever seen +would shrink by comparison to the dimensions of a Newfoundland dog. +</P> + +<P> +Our fire was just within the cave, the smoke rising through the +apertures between the rocks that I had piled in such a way that they +arched inward toward the cliff at the top. The opening by means of +which we were to reach the outside was barricaded with a few large +fragments which did not by any means close it entirely; but through the +apertures thus left no large animal could gain ingress. I had depended +most, however, upon our fire, feeling that none of the dangerous +nocturnal beasts of prey would venture close to the flames. In this, +however, I was quite evidently in error, for the great bear stood with +his nose not a foot from the blaze, which was now low, owing to the +fact that I had been so occupied with my lesson and my teacher that I +had neglected to replenish it. +</P> + +<P> +Ajor whipped out her futile little knife and pointed to my rifle. At +the same time she spoke in a quite level voice entirely devoid of +nervousness or any evidence of fear or panic. I knew she was exhorting +me to fire upon the beast; but this I did not wish to do other than as +a last resort, for I was quite sure that even my heavy bullets would +not more than further enrage him—in which case he might easily force +an entrance to our cave. +</P> + +<P> +Instead of firing, I piled some more wood upon the fire, and as the +smoke and blaze arose in the beast's face, it backed away, growling +most frightfully; but I still could see two ugly points of light +blazing in the outer darkness and hear its growls rumbling terrifically +without. For some time the creature stood there watching the entrance +to our frail sanctuary while I racked my brains in futile endeavor to +plan some method of defense or escape. I knew full well that should +the bear make a determined effort to get at us, the rocks I had piled +as a barrier would come tumbling down about his giant shoulders like a +house of cards, and that he would walk directly in upon us. +</P> + +<P> +Ajor, having less knowledge of the effectiveness of firearms than I, +and therefore greater confidence in them, entreated me to shoot the +beast; but I knew that the chance that I could stop it with a single +shot was most remote, while that I should but infuriate it was real and +present; and so I waited for what seemed an eternity, watching those +devilish points of fire glaring balefully at us, and listening to the +ever-increasing volume of those seismic growls which seemed to rumble +upward from the bowels of the earth, shaking the very cliffs beneath +which we cowered, until at last I saw that the brute was again +approaching the aperture. It availed me nothing that I piled the blaze +high with firewood, until Ajor and I were near to roasting; on came +that mighty engine of destruction until once again the hideous face +yawned its fanged yawn directly within the barrier's opening. It stood +thus a moment, and then the head was withdrawn. I breathed a sigh of +relief, the thing had altered its intention and was going on in search +of other and more easily procurable prey; the fire had been too much +for it. +</P> + +<P> +But my joy was short-lived, and my heart sank once again as a moment +later I saw a mighty paw insinuated into the opening—a paw as large +around as a large dishpan. Very gently the paw toyed with the great +rock that partly closed the entrance, pushed and pulled upon it and +then very deliberately drew it outward and to one side. Again came the +head, and this time much farther into the cavern; but still the great +shoulders would not pass through the opening. Ajor moved closer to me +until her shoulder touched my side, and I thought I felt a slight +tremor run through her body, but otherwise she gave no indication of +fear. Involuntarily I threw my left arm about her and drew her to me +for an instant. It was an act of reassurance rather than a caress, +though I must admit that again and even in the face of death I thrilled +at the contact with her; and then I released her and threw my rifle to +my shoulder, for at last I had reached the conclusion that nothing more +could be gained by waiting. My only hope was to get as many shots into +the creature as I could before it was upon me. Already it had torn +away a second rock and was in the very act of forcing its huge bulk +through the opening it had now made. +</P> + +<P> +So now I took careful aim between its eyes; my right fingers closed +firmly and evenly upon the small of the stock, drawing back my +trigger-finger by the muscular action of the hand. The bullet could +not fail to hit its mark! I held my breath lest I swerve the muzzle a +hair by my breathing. I was as steady and cool as I ever had been upon +a target-range, and I had the full consciousness of a perfect hit in +anticipation; I knew that I could not miss. And then, as the bear +surged forward toward me, the hammer fell—futilely, upon an imperfect +cartridge. +</P> + +<P> +Almost simultaneously I heard from without a perfectly hellish roar; +the bear gave voice to a series of growls far transcending in volume +and ferocity anything that he had yet essayed and at the same time +backed quickly from the cave. For an instant I couldn't understand +what had happened to cause this sudden retreat when his prey was +practically within his clutches. The idea that the harmless clicking +of the hammer had frightened him was too ridiculous to entertain. +However, we had not long to wait before we could at least guess at the +cause of the diversion, for from without came mingled growls and roars +and the sound of great bodies thrashing about until the earth shook. +The bear had been attacked in the rear by some other mighty beast, and +the two were now locked in a titanic struggle for supremacy. With +brief respites, during which we could hear the labored breathing of the +contestants, the battle continued for the better part of an hour until +the sounds of combat grew gradually less and finally ceased entirely. +</P> + +<P> +At Ajor's suggestion, made by signs and a few of the words we knew in +common, I moved the fire directly to the entrance to the cave so that a +beast would have to pass directly through the flames to reach us, and +then we sat and waited for the victor of the battle to come and claim +his reward; but though we sat for a long time with our eyes glued to +the opening, we saw no sign of any beast. +</P> + +<P> +At last I signed to Ajor to lie down, for I knew that she must have +sleep, and I sat on guard until nearly morning, when the girl awoke and +insisted that I take some rest; nor would she be denied, but dragged me +down as she laughingly menaced me with her knife. +</P> + +<BR><BR><BR> + +<A NAME="chap03"></A> +<H3 ALIGN="center"> +Chapter 3 +</H3> + +<P> +When I awoke, it was daylight, and I found Ajor squatting before a fine +bed of coals roasting a large piece of antelope-meat. Believe me, the +sight of the new day and the delicious odor of the cooking meat filled +me with renewed happiness and hope that had been all but expunged by +the experience of the previous night; and perhaps the slender figure of +the bright-faced girl proved also a potent restorative. She looked up +and smiled at me, showing those perfect teeth, and dimpling with +evident happiness—the most adorable picture that I had ever seen. I +recall that it was then I first regretted that she was only a little +untutored savage and so far beneath me in the scale of evolution. +</P> + +<P> +Her first act was to beckon me to follow her outside, and there she +pointed to the explanation of our rescue from the bear—a huge +saber-tooth tiger, its fine coat and its flesh torn to ribbons, lying +dead a few paces from our cave, and beside it, equally mangled, and +disemboweled, was the carcass of a huge cave-bear. To have had one's +life saved by a saber-tooth tiger, and in the twentieth century into +the bargain, was an experience that was to say the least unique; but it +had happened—I had the proof of it before my eyes. +</P> + +<P> +So enormous are the great carnivora of Caspak that they must feed +perpetually to support their giant thews, and the result is that they +will eat the meat of any other creature and will attack anything that +comes within their ken, no matter how formidable the quarry. From +later observation—I mention this as worthy the attention of +paleontologists and naturalists—I came to the conclusion that such +creatures as the cave-bear, the cave-lion and the saber-tooth tiger, as +well as the larger carnivorous reptiles make, ordinarily, two kills a +day—one in the morning and one after night. They immediately devour +the entire carcass, after which they lie up and sleep for a few hours. +Fortunately their numbers are comparatively few; otherwise there would +be no other life within Caspak. It is their very voracity that keeps +their numbers down to a point which permits other forms of life to +persist, for even in the season of love the great males often turn upon +their own mates and devour them, while both males and females +occasionally devour their young. How the human and semihuman races +have managed to survive during all the countless ages that these +conditions must have existed here is quite beyond me. +</P> + +<P> +After breakfast Ajor and I set out once more upon our northward +journey. We had gone but a little distance when we were attacked by a +number of apelike creatures armed with clubs. They seemed a little +higher in the scale than the Alus. Ajor told me they were Bo-lu, or +clubmen. A revolver-shot killed one and scattered the others; but +several times later during the day we were menaced by them, until we +had left their country and entered that of the Sto-lu, or hatchet-men. +These people were less hairy and more man-like; nor did they appear so +anxious to destroy us. Rather they were curious, and followed us for +some distance examining us most closely. They called out to us, and +Ajor answered them; but her replies did not seem to satisfy them, for +they gradually became threatening, and I think they were preparing to +attack us when a small deer that had been hiding in some low brush +suddenly broke cover and dashed across our front. We needed meat, for +it was near one o'clock and I was getting hungry; so I drew my pistol +and with a single shot dropped the creature in its tracks. The effect +upon the Bo-lu was electrical. Immediately they abandoned all thoughts +of war, and turning, scampered for the forest which fringed our path. +</P> + +<P> +That night we spent beside a little stream in the Sto-lu country. We +found a tiny cave in the rock bank, so hidden away that only chance +could direct a beast of prey to it, and after we had eaten of the +deer-meat and some fruit which Ajor gathered, we crawled into the +little hole, and with sticks and stones which I had gathered for the +purpose I erected a strong barricade inside the entrance. Nothing +could reach us without swimming and wading through the stream, and I +felt quite secure from attack. Our quarters were rather cramped. The +ceiling was so low that we could not stand up, and the floor so narrow +that it was with difficulty that we both wedged into it together; but +we were very tired, and so we made the most of it; and so great was the +feeling of security that I am sure I fell asleep as soon as I had +stretched myself beside Ajor. +</P> + +<P> +During the three days which followed, our progress was exasperatingly +slow. I doubt if we made ten miles in the entire three days. The +country was hideously savage, so that we were forced to spend hours at +a time in hiding from one or another of the great beasts which menaced +us continually. There were fewer reptiles; but the quantity of +carnivora seemed to have increased, and the reptiles that we did see +were perfectly gigantic. I shall never forget one enormous specimen +which we came upon browsing upon water-reeds at the edge of the great +sea. It stood well over twelve feet high at the rump, its highest +point, and with its enormously long tail and neck it was somewhere +between seventy-five and a hundred feet in length. Its head was +ridiculously small; its body was unarmored, but its great bulk gave it +a most formidable appearance. My experience of Caspakian life led me +to believe that the gigantic creature would but have to see us to +attack us, and so I raised my rifle and at the same time drew away +toward some brush which offered concealment; but Ajor only laughed, and +picking up a stick, ran toward the great thing, shouting. The little +head was raised high upon the long neck as the animal stupidly looked +here and there in search of the author of the disturbance. At last its +eyes discovered tiny little Ajor, and then she hurled the stick at the +diminutive head. With a cry that sounded not unlike the bleat of a +sheep, the colossal creature shuffled into the water and was soon +submerged. +</P> + +<P> +As I slowly recalled my collegiate studies and paleontological readings +in Bowen's textbooks, I realized that I had looked upon nothing less +than a diplodocus of the Upper Jurassic; but how infinitely different +was the true, live thing from the crude restorations of Hatcher and +Holland! I had had the idea that the diplodocus was a land-animal, but +evidently it is partially amphibious. I have seen several since my +first encounter, and in each case the creature took to the sea for +concealment as soon as it was disturbed. With the exception of its +gigantic tail, it has no weapon of defense; but with this appendage it +can lash so terrific a blow as to lay low even a giant cave-bear, +stunned and broken. It is a stupid, simple, gentle beast—one of the +few within Caspak which such a description might even remotely fit. +</P> + +<P> +For three nights we slept in trees, finding no caves or other places of +concealment. Here we were free from the attacks of the large land +carnivora; but the smaller flying reptiles, the snakes, leopards, and +panthers were a constant menace, though by no means as much to be +feared as the huge beasts that roamed the surface of the earth. +</P> + +<P> +At the close of the third day Ajor and I were able to converse with +considerable fluency, and it was a great relief to both of us, +especially to Ajor. She now did nothing but ask questions whenever I +would let her, which could not be all the time, as our preservation +depended largely upon the rapidity with which I could gain knowledge of +the geography and customs of Caspak, and accordingly I had to ask +numerous questions myself. +</P> + +<P> +I enjoyed immensely hearing and answering her, so naive were many of +her queries and so filled with wonder was she at the things I told her +of the world beyond the lofty barriers of Caspak; not once did she seem +to doubt me, however marvelous my statements must have seemed; and +doubtless they were the cause of marvel to Ajor, who before had never +dreamed that any life existed beyond Caspak and the life she knew. +</P> + +<P> +Artless though many of her questions were, they evidenced a keen +intellect and a shrewdness which seemed far beyond her years or her +experience. Altogether I was finding my little savage a mighty +interesting and companionable person, and I often thanked the kind fate +that directed the crossing of our paths. From her I learned much of +Caspak, but there still remained the mystery that had proved so +baffling to Bowen Tyler—the total absence of young among the ape, the +semihuman and the human races with which both he and I had come in +contact upon opposite shores of the inland sea. Ajor tried to explain +the matter to me, though it was apparent that she could not conceive +how so natural a condition should demand explanation. She told me that +among the Galus there were a few babies, that she had once been a baby +but that most of her people "came up," as he put it, "<i>cor sva jo</i>," or +literally, "from the beginning"; and as they all did when they used +that phrase, she would wave a broad gesture toward the south. +</P> + +<P> +"For long," she explained, leaning very close to me and whispering the +words into my ear while she cast apprehensive glances about and mostly +skyward, "for long my mother kept me hidden lest the Wieroo, passing +through the air by night, should come and take me away to Oo-oh." And +the child shuddered as she voiced the word. I tried to get her to tell +me more; but her terror was so real when she spoke of the Wieroo and +the land of Oo-oh where they dwell that I at last desisted, though I +did learn that the Wieroo carried off only female babes and +occasionally women of the Galus who had "come up from the beginning." +It was all very mysterious and unfathomable, but I got the idea that +the Wieroo were creatures of imagination—the demons or gods of her +race, omniscient and omnipresent. This led me to assume that the Galus +had a religious sense, and further questioning brought out the fact +that such was the case. Ajor spoke in tones of reverence of Luata, the +god of heat and life. The word is derived from two others: <i>Lua</i>, +meaning <i>sun</i>, and <i>ata</i>, meaning variously <i>eggs, life, young</i>, and +<i>reproduction</i>. She told me that they worshiped Luata in several forms, +as fire, the sun, eggs and other material objects which suggested heat +and reproduction. +</P> + +<P> +I had noticed that whenever I built a fire, Ajor outlined in the air +before her with a forefinger an isosceles triangle, and that she did +the same in the morning when she first viewed the sun. At first I had +not connected her act with anything in particular, but after we learned +to converse and she had explained a little of her religious +superstitions, I realized that she was making the sign of the triangle +as a Roman Catholic makes the sign of the cross. Always the short side +of the triangle was uppermost. As she explained all this to me, she +pointed to the decorations on her golden armlets, upon the knob of her +dagger-hilt and upon the band which encircled her right leg above the +knee—always was the design partly made up of isosceles triangles, and +when she explained the significance of this particular geometric +figure, I at once grasped its appropriateness. +</P> + +<P> +We were now in the country of the Band-lu, the spearmen of Caspak. +Bowen had remarked in his narrative that these people were analogous to +the so-called Cro-Magnon race of the Upper Paleolithic, and I was +therefore very anxious to see them. Nor was I to be disappointed; I +saw them, all right! We had left the Sto-lu country and literally +fought our way through cordons of wild beasts for two days when we +decided to make camp a little earlier than usual, owing to the fact +that we had reached a line of cliffs running east and west in which +were numerous likely cave-lodgings. We were both very tired, and the +sight of these caverns, several of which could be easily barricaded, +decided us to halt until the following morning. It took but a few +minutes' exploration to discover one particular cavern high up the face +of the cliff which seemed ideal for our purpose. It opened upon a +narrow ledge where we could build our cook-fire; the opening was so +small that we had to lie flat and wriggle through it to gain ingress, +while the interior was high-ceiled and spacious. I lighted a faggot +and looked about; but as far as I could see, the chamber ran back into +the cliff. +</P> + +<P> +Laying aside my rifle, pistol and heavy ammunition-belt, I left Ajor in +the cave while I went down to gather firewood. We already had meat and +fruits which we had gathered just before reaching the cliffs, and my +canteen was filled with fresh water. Therefore, all we required was +fuel, and as I always saved Ajor's strength when I could, I would not +permit her to accompany me. The poor girl was very tired; but she +would have gone with me until she dropped, I know, so loyal was she. +She was the best comrade in the world, and sometimes I regretted and +sometimes I was glad that she was not of my own caste, for had she +been, I should unquestionably have fallen in love with her. As it was, +we traveled together like two boys, with huge respect for each other +but no softer sentiment. +</P> + +<P> +There was little timber close to the base of the cliffs, and so I was +forced to enter the wood some two hundred yards distant. I realize now +how foolhardy was my act in such a land as Caspak, teeming with danger +and with death; but there is a certain amount of fool in every man; and +whatever proportion of it I own must have been in the ascendant that +day, for the truth of the matter is that I went down into those woods +absolutely defenseless; and I paid the price, as people usually do for +their indiscretions. As I searched around in the brush for likely +pieces of firewood, my head bowed and my eyes upon the ground, I +suddenly felt a great weight hurl itself upon me. I struggled to my +knees and seized my assailant, a huge, naked man—naked except for a +breechcloth of snakeskin, the head hanging down to the knees. The +fellow was armed with a stone-shod spear, a stone knife and a hatchet. +In his black hair were several gay-colored feathers. As we struggled +to and fro, I was slowly gaining advantage of him, when a score of his +fellows came running up and overpowered me. +</P> + +<P> +They bound my hands behind me with long rawhide thongs and then +surveyed me critically. I found them fine-looking specimens of +manhood, for the most part. There were some among them who bore a +resemblance to the Sto-lu and were hairy; but the majority had massive +heads and not unlovely features. There was little about them to +suggest the ape, as in the Sto-lu, Bo-lu and Alus. I expected them to +kill me at once, but they did not. Instead they questioned me; but it +was evident that they did not believe my story, for they scoffed and +laughed. +</P> + +<P> +"The Galus have turned you out," they cried. "If you go back to them, +you will die. If you remain here, you will die. We shall kill you; +but first we shall have a dance and you shall dance with us—the dance +of death." +</P> + +<P> +It sounded quite reassuring! But I knew that I was not to be killed +immediately, and so I took heart. They led me toward the cliffs, and +as we approached them, I glanced up and was sure that I saw Ajor's +bright eyes peering down upon us from our lofty cave; but she gave no +sign if she saw me; and we passed on, rounded the end of the cliffs and +proceeded along the opposite face of them until we came to a section +literally honeycombed with caves. All about, upon the ground and +swarming the ledges before the entrances, were hundreds of members of +the tribe. There were many women but no babes or children, though I +noticed that the females had better developed breasts than any that I +had seen among the hatchet-men, the club-men, the Alus or the apes. In +fact, among the lower orders of Caspakian man the female breast is but +a rudimentary organ, barely suggested in the apes and Alus, and only a +little more defined in the Bo-lu and Sto-lu, though always increasingly +so until it is found about half developed in the females of the +spear-men; yet never was there an indication that the females had +suckled young; nor were there any young among them. Some of the +Band-lu women were quite comely. The figures of all, both men and +women, were symmetrical though heavy, and though there were some who +verged strongly upon the Sto-lu type, there were others who were +positively handsome and whose bodies were quite hairless. The Alus are +all bearded, but among the Bo-lu the beard disappears in the women. +The Sto-lu men show a sparse beard, the Band-lu none; and there is +little hair upon the bodies of their women. +</P> + +<P> +The members of the tribe showed great interest in me, especially in my +clothing, the like of which, of course, they never had seen. They +pulled and hauled upon me, and some of them struck me; but for the most +part they were not inclined to brutality. It was only the hairier +ones, who most closely resembled the Sto-lu, who maltreated me. At +last my captors led me into a great cave in the mouth of which a fire +was burning. The floor was littered with filth, including the bones of +many animals, and the atmosphere reeked with the stench of human bodies +and putrefying flesh. Here they fed me, releasing my arms, and I ate +of half-cooked aurochs steak and a stew which may have been made of +snakes, for many of the long, round pieces of meat suggested them most +nauseatingly. +</P> + +<P> +The meal completed, they led me well within the cavern, which they +lighted with torches stuck in various crevices in the light of which I +saw, to my astonishment, that the walls were covered with paintings and +etchings. There were aurochs, red deer, saber-tooth tiger, cave-bear, +hyaenadon and many other examples of the fauna of Caspak done in +colors, usually of four shades of brown, or scratched upon the surface +of the rock. Often they were super-imposed upon each other until it +required careful examination to trace out the various outlines. But +they all showed a rather remarkable aptitude for delineation which +further fortified Bowen's comparisons between these people and the +extinct Cro-Magnons whose ancient art is still preserved in the caverns +of Niaux and Le Portel. The Band-lu, however, did not have the bow and +arrow, and in this respect they differ from their extinct progenitors, +or descendants, of Western Europe. +</P> + +<P> +Should any of my friends chance to read the story of my adventures upon +Caprona, I hope they will not be bored by these diversions, and if they +are, I can only say that I am writing my memoirs for my own edification +and therefore setting down those things which interested me +particularly at the time. I have no desire that the general public +should ever have access to these pages; but it is possible that my +friends may, and also certain savants who are interested; and to them, +while I do not apologize for my philosophizing, I humbly explain that +they are witnessing the gropings of a finite mind after the infinite, +the search for explanations of the inexplicable. +</P> + +<P> +In a far recess of the cavern my captors bade me halt. Again my hands +were secured, and this time my feet as well. During the operation they +questioned me, and I was mighty glad that the marked similarity between +the various tribal tongues of Caspak enabled us to understand each +other perfectly, even though they were unable to believe or even to +comprehend the truth of my origin and the circumstances of my advent in +Caspak; and finally they left me saying that they would come for me +before the dance of death upon the morrow. Before they departed with +their torches, I saw that I had not been conducted to the farthest +extremity of the cavern, for a dark and gloomy corridor led beyond my +prison room into the heart of the cliff. +</P> + +<P> +I could not but marvel at the immensity of this great underground +grotto. Already I had traversed several hundred yards of it, from many +points of which other corridors diverged. The whole cliff must be +honeycombed with apartments and passages of which this community +occupied but a comparatively small part, so that the possibility of the +more remote passages being the lair of savage beasts that have other +means of ingress and egress than that used by the Band-lu filled me +with dire forebodings. +</P> + +<P> +I believe that I am not ordinarily hysterically apprehensive; yet I +must confess that under the conditions with which I was confronted, I +felt my nerves to be somewhat shaken. On the morrow I was to die some +sort of nameless death for the diversion of a savage horde, but the +morrow held fewer terrors for me than the present, and I submit to any +fair-minded man if it is not a terrifying thing to lie bound hand and +foot in the Stygian blackness of an immense cave peopled by unknown +dangers in a land overrun by hideous beasts and reptiles of the +greatest ferocity. At any moment, perhaps at this very moment, some +silent-footed beast of prey might catch my scent where it laired in +some contiguous passage, and might creep stealthily upon me. I craned +my neck about, and stared through the inky darkness for the twin spots +of blazing hate which I knew would herald the coming of my executioner. +So real were the imaginings of my overwrought brain that I broke into a +cold sweat in absolute conviction that some beast was close before me; +yet the hours dragged, and no sound broke the grave-like stillness of +the cavern. +</P> + +<P> +During that period of eternity many events of my life passed before my +mental vision, a vast parade of friends and occurrences which would be +blotted out forever on the morrow. I cursed myself for the foolish act +which had taken me from the search-party that so depended upon me, and +I wondered what progress, if any, they had made. Were they still +beyond the barrier cliffs, awaiting my return? Or had they found a way +into Caspak? I felt that the latter would be the truth, for the party +was not made up of men easily turned from a purpose. Quite probable it +was that they were already searching for me; but that they would ever +find a trace of me I doubted. Long since, had I come to the conclusion +that it was beyond human prowess to circle the shores of the inland sea +of Caspak in the face of the myriad menaces which lurked in every +shadow by day and by night. Long since, had I given up any hope of +reaching the point where I had made my entry into the country, and so I +was now equally convinced that our entire expedition had been worse +than futile before ever it was conceived, since Bowen J. Tyler and his +wife could not by any possibility have survived during all these long +months; no more could Bradley and his party of seamen be yet in +existence. If the superior force and equipment of my party enabled +them to circle the north end of the sea, they might some day come upon +the broken wreck of my plane hanging in the great tree to the south; +but long before that, my bones would be added to the litter upon the +floor of this mighty cavern. +</P> + +<P> +And through all my thoughts, real and fanciful, moved the image of a +perfect girl, clear-eyed and strong and straight and beautiful, with +the carriage of a queen and the supple, undulating grace of a leopard. +Though I loved my friends, their fate seemed of less importance to me +than the fate of this little barbarian stranger for whom, I had +convinced myself many a time, I felt no greater sentiment than passing +friendship for a fellow-wayfarer in this land of horrors. Yet I so +worried and fretted about her and her future that at last I quite +forgot my own predicament, though I still struggled intermittently with +my bonds in vain endeavor to free myself; as much, however, that I might +hasten to her protection as that I might escape the fate which had been +planned for me. And while I was thus engaged and had for the moment +forgotten my apprehensions concerning prowling beasts, I was startled +into tense silence by a distinct and unmistakable sound coming from the +dark corridor farther toward the heart of the cliff—the sound of +padded feet moving stealthily in my direction. +</P> + +<P> +I believe that never before in all my life, even amidst the terrors of +childhood nights, have I suffered such a sensation of extreme horror as +I did that moment in which I realized that I must lie bound and +helpless while some horrid beast of prey crept upon me to devour me in +that utter darkness of the Band-lu pits of Caspak. I reeked with cold +sweat, and my flesh crawled—I could feel it crawl. If ever I came +nearer to abject cowardice, I do not recall the instance; and yet it +was not that I was afraid to die, for I had long since given myself up +as lost—a few days of Caspak must impress anyone with the utter +nothingness of life. The waters, the land, the air teem with it, and +always it is being devoured by some other form of life. Life is the +cheapest thing in Caspak, as it is the cheapest thing on earth and, +doubtless, the cheapest cosmic production. No, I was not afraid to +die; in fact, I prayed for death, that I might be relieved of the +frightfulness of the interval of life which remained to me—the +waiting, the awful waiting, for that fearsome beast to reach me and to +strike. +</P> + +<P> +Presently it was so close that I could hear its breathing, and then it +touched me and leaped quickly back as though it had come upon me +unexpectedly. For long moments no sound broke the sepulchral silence +of the cave. Then I heard a movement on the part of the creature near +me, and again it touched me, and I felt something like a hairless hand +pass over my face and down until it touched the collar of my flannel +shirt. And then, subdued, but filled with pent emotion, a voice cried: +"Tom!" +</P> + +<P> +I think I nearly fainted, so great was the reaction. "Ajor!" I +managed to say. "Ajor, my girl, can it be you?" +</P> + +<P> +"Oh, Tom!" she cried again in a trembly little voice and flung herself +upon me, sobbing softly. I had not known that Ajor could cry. +</P> + +<P> +As she cut away my bonds, she told me that from the entrance to our +cave she had seen the Band-lu coming out of the forest with me, and she +had followed until they took me into the cave, which she had seen was +upon the opposite side of the cliff in which ours was located; and +then, knowing that she could do nothing for me until after the Band-lu +slept, she had hastened to return to our cave. With difficulty she had +reached it, after having been stalked by a cave-lion and almost seized. +I trembled at the risk she had run. +</P> + +<P> +It had been her intention to wait until after midnight, when most of +the carnivora would have made their kills, and then attempt to reach +the cave in which I was imprisoned and rescue me. She explained that +with my rifle and pistol—both of which she assured me she could use, +having watched me so many times—she planned upon frightening the +Band-lu and forcing them to give me up. Brave little girl! She would +have risked her life willingly to save me. But some time after she +reached our cave she heard voices from the far recesses within, and +immediately concluded that we had but found another entrance to the +caves which the Band-lu occupied upon the other face of the cliff. +Then she had set out through those winding passages and in total +darkness had groped her way, guided solely by a marvelous sense of +direction, to where I lay. She had had to proceed with utmost caution +lest she fall into some abyss in the darkness and in truth she had +thrice come upon sheer drops and had been forced to take the most +frightful risks to pass them. I shudder even now as I contemplate what +this girl passed through for my sake and how she enhanced her peril in +loading herself down with the weight of my arms and ammunition and the +awkwardness of the long rifle which she was unaccustomed to bearing. +</P> + +<P> +I could have knelt and kissed her hand in reverence and gratitude; nor +am I ashamed to say that that is precisely what I did after I had been +freed from my bonds and heard the story of her trials. Brave little +Ajor! Wonder-girl out of the dim, unthinkable past! Never before had +she been kissed; but she seemed to sense something of the meaning of +the new caress, for she leaned forward in the dark and pressed her own +lips to my forehead. A sudden urge surged through me to seize her and +strain her to my bosom and cover her hot young lips with the kisses of +a real love, but I did not do so, for I knew that I did not love her; +and to have kissed her thus, with passion, would have been to inflict a +great wrong upon her who had offered her life for mine. +</P> + +<P> +No, Ajor should be as safe with me as with her own mother, if she had +one, which I was inclined to doubt, even though she told me that she +had once been a babe and hidden by her mother. I had come to doubt if +there was such a thing as a mother in Caspak, a mother such as we know. +From the Bo-lu to the Kro-lu there is no word which corresponds with +our word mother. They speak of <i>ata</i> and <i>cor sva jo</i>, meaning +<i>reproduction</i> and <i>from the beginning</i>, and point toward the south; but no +one has a mother. +</P> + +<P> +After considerable difficulty we gained what we thought was our cave, +only to find that it was not, and then we realized that we were lost in +the labyrinthine mazes of the great cavern. We retraced our steps and +sought the point from which we had started, but only succeeded in +losing ourselves the more. Ajor was aghast—not so much from fear of +our predicament; but that she should have failed in the functioning of +that wonderful sense she possessed in common with most other creatures +Caspakian, which makes it possible for them to move unerringly from +place to place without compass or guide. +</P> + +<P> +Hand in hand we crept along, searching for an opening into the outer +world, yet realizing that at each step we might be burrowing more +deeply into the heart of the great cliff, or circling futilely in the +vague wandering that could end only in death. And the darkness! It +was almost palpable, and utterly depressing. I had matches, and in +some of the more difficult places I struck one; but we couldn't afford +to waste them, and so we groped our way slowly along, doing the best we +could to keep to one general direction in the hope that it would +eventually lead us to an opening into the outer world. When I struck +matches, I noticed that the walls bore no paintings; nor was there +other sign that man had penetrated this far within the cliff, nor any +spoor of animals of other kinds. +</P> + +<P> +It would be difficult to guess at the time we spent wandering through +those black corridors, climbing steep ascents, feeling our way along +the edges of bottomless pits, never knowing at what moment we might be +plunged into some abyss and always haunted by the ever-present terror +of death by starvation and thirst. As difficult as it was, I still +realized that it might have been infinitely worse had I had another +companion than Ajor—courageous, uncomplaining, loyal little Ajor! She +was tired and hungry and thirsty, and she must have been discouraged; +but she never faltered in her cheerfulness. I asked her if she was +afraid, and she replied that here the Wieroo could not get her, and +that if she died of hunger, she would at least die with me and she was +quite content that such should be her end. At the time I attributed +her attitude to something akin to a doglike devotion to a new master +who had been kind to her. I can take oath to the fact that I did not +think it was anything more. +</P> + +<P> +Whether we had been imprisoned in the cliff for a day or a week I could +not say; nor even now do I know. We became very tired and hungry; the +hours dragged; we slept at least twice, and then we rose and stumbled +on, always weaker and weaker. There were ages during which the trend +of the corridors was always upward. It was heartbreaking work for +people in the state of exhaustion in which we then were, but we clung +tenaciously to it. We stumbled and fell; we sank through pure physical +inability to retain our feet; but always we managed to rise at last and +go on. At first, wherever it had been possible, we had walked hand in +hand lest we become separated, and later, when I saw that Ajor was +weakening rapidly, we went side by side, I supporting her with an arm +about her waist. I still retained the heavy burden of my armament; but +with the rifle slung to my back, my hands were free. When I too showed +indisputable evidences of exhaustion, Ajor suggested that I lay aside +my arms and ammunition; but I told her that as it would mean certain +death for me to traverse Caspak without them, I might as well take the +chance of dying here in the cave with them, for there was the other +chance that we might find our way to liberty. +</P> + +<P> +There came a time when Ajor could no longer walk, and then it was that +I picked her up in my arms and carried her. She begged me to leave +her, saying that after I found an exit, I could come back and get her; +but she knew, and she knew that I knew, that if ever I did leave her, I +could never find her again. Yet she insisted. Barely had I sufficient +strength to take a score of steps at a time; then I would have to sink +down and rest for five to ten minutes. I don't know what force urged +me on and kept me going in the face of an absolute conviction that my +efforts were utterly futile. I counted us already as good as dead; but +still I dragged myself along until the time came that I could no longer +rise, but could only crawl along a few inches at a time, dragging Ajor +beside me. Her sweet voice, now almost inaudible from weakness, +implored me to abandon her and save myself—she seemed to think only of +me. Of course I couldn't have left her there alone, no matter how much +I might have desired to do so; but the fact of the matter was that I +didn't desire to leave her. What I said to her then came very simply +and naturally to my lips. It couldn't very well have been otherwise, I +imagine, for with death so close, I doubt if people are much inclined +to heroics. "I would rather not get out at all, Ajor," I said to her, +"than to get out without you." We were resting against a rocky wall, +and Ajor was leaning against me, her head on my breast. I could feel +her press closer to me, and one hand stroked my arm in a weak caress; +but she didn't say anything, nor were words necessary. +</P> + +<P> +After a few minutes' more rest, we started on again upon our utterly +hopeless way; but I soon realized that I was weakening rapidly, and +presently I was forced to admit that I was through. "It's no use, +Ajor," I said, "I've come as far as I can. It may be that if I sleep, +I can go on again after," but I knew that that was not true, and that +the end was near. "Yes, sleep," said Ajor. "We will sleep +together—forever." +</P> + +<P> +She crept close to me as I lay on the hard floor and pillowed her head +upon my arm. With the little strength which remained to me, I drew her +up until our lips touched, and, then I whispered: "Good-bye!" I must +have lost consciousness almost immediately, for I recall nothing more +until I suddenly awoke out of a troubled sleep, during which I dreamed +that I was drowning, to find the cave lighted by what appeared to be +diffused daylight, and a tiny trickle of water running down the +corridor and forming a puddle in the little depression in which it +chanced that Ajor and I lay. I turned my eyes quickly upon Ajor, +fearful for what the light might disclose; but she still breathed, +though very faintly. Then I searched about for an explanation of the +light, and soon discovered that it came from about a bend in the +corridor just ahead of us and at the top of a steep incline; and +instantly I realized that Ajor and I had stumbled by night almost to +the portal of salvation. Had chance taken us a few yards further, up +either of the corridors which diverged from ours just ahead of us, we +might have been irrevocably lost; we might still be lost; but at least +we could die in the light of day, out of the horrid blackness of this +terrible cave. +</P> + +<P> +I tried to rise, and found that sleep had given me back a portion of my +strength; and then I tasted the water and was further refreshed. I +shook Ajor gently by the shoulder; but she did not open her eyes, and +then I gathered a few drops of water in my cupped palm and let them +trickle between her lips. This revived her so that she raised her +lids, and when she saw me, she smiled. +</P> + +<P> +"What happened?" she asked. "Where are we?" +</P> + +<P> +"We are at the end of the corridor," I replied, "and daylight is coming +in from the outside world just ahead. We are saved, Ajor!" +</P> + +<P> +She sat up then and looked about, and then, quite womanlike, she burst +into tears. It was the reaction, of course; and then too, she was very +weak. I took her in my arms and quieted her as best I could, and +finally, with my help, she got to her feet; for she, as well as I, had +found some slight recuperation in sleep. Together we staggered upward +toward the light, and at the first turn we saw an opening a few yards +ahead of us and a leaden sky beyond—a leaden sky from which was +falling a drizzling rain, the author of our little, trickling stream +which had given us drink when we were most in need of it. +</P> + +<P> +The cave had been damp and cold; but as we crawled through the +aperture, the muggy warmth of the Caspakian air caressed and confronted +us; even the rain was warmer than the atmosphere of those dark +corridors. We had water now, and warmth, and I was sure that Caspak +would soon offer us meat or fruit; but as we came to where we could +look about, we saw that we were upon the summit of the cliffs, where +there seemed little reason to expect game. However, there were trees, +and among them we soon descried edible fruits with which we broke our +long fast. +</P> + +<BR><BR><BR> + +<A NAME="chap04"></A> +<H3 ALIGN="center"> +Chapter 4 +</H3> + +<P> +We spent two days upon the cliff-top, resting and recuperating. There +was some small game which gave us meat, and the little pools of +rainwater were sufficient to quench our thirst. The sun came out a few +hours after we emerged from the cave, and in its warmth we soon cast +off the gloom which our recent experiences had saddled upon us. +</P> + +<P> +Upon the morning of the third day we set out to search for a path down +to the valley. Below us, to the north, we saw a large pool lying at +the foot of the cliffs, and in it we could discern the women of the +Band-lu lying in the shallow waters, while beyond and close to the base +of the mighty barrier-cliffs there was a large party of Band-lu +warriors going north to hunt. We had a splendid view from our lofty +cliff-top. Dimly, to the west, we could see the farther shore of the +inland sea, and southwest the large southern island loomed distinctly +before us. A little east of north was the northern island, which Ajor, +shuddering, whispered was the home of the Wieroo—the land of Oo-oh. +It lay at the far end of the lake and was barely visible to us, being +fully sixty miles away. +</P> + +<P> +From our elevation, and in a clearer atmosphere, it would have stood +out distinctly; but the air of Caspak is heavy with moisture, with the +result that distant objects are blurred and indistinct. Ajor also told +me that the mainland east of Oo-oh was her land—the land of the Galu. +She pointed out the cliffs at its southern boundary, which mark the +frontier, south of which lies the country of Kro-lu—the archers. We +now had but to pass through the balance of the Band-lu territory and +that of the Kro-lu to be within the confines of her own land; but that +meant traversing thirty-five miles of hostile country filled with every +imaginable terror, and possibly many beyond the powers of imagination. +I would certainly have given a lot for my plane at that moment, for +with it, twenty minutes would have landed us within the confines of +Ajor's country. +</P> + +<P> +We finally found a place where we could slip over the edge of the cliff +onto a narrow ledge which seemed to give evidence of being something of +a game-path to the valley, though it apparently had not been used for +some time. I lowered Ajor at the end of my rifle and then slid over +myself, and I am free to admit that my hair stood on end during the +process, for the drop was considerable and the ledge appallingly +narrow, with a frightful drop sheer below down to the rocks at the base +of the cliff; but with Ajor there to catch and steady me, I made it all +right, and then we set off down the trail toward the valley. There +were two or three more bad places, but for the most part it was an easy +descent, and we came to the highest of the Band-lu caves without +further trouble. Here we went more slowly, lest we should be set upon +by some member of the tribe. +</P> + +<P> +We must have passed about half the Band-lu cave-levels before we were +accosted, and then a huge fellow stepped out in front of me, barring +our further progress. +</P> + +<P> +"Who are you?" he asked; and he recognized me and I him, for he had +been one of those who had led me back into the cave and bound me the +night that I had been captured. From me his gaze went to Ajor. He was +a fine-looking man with clear, intelligent eyes, a good forehead and +superb physique—by far the highest type of Caspakian I had yet seen, +barring Ajor, of course. +</P> + +<P> +"You are a true Galu," he said to Ajor, "but this man is of a different +mold. He has the face of a Galu, but his weapons and the strange skins +he wears upon his body are not of the Galus nor of Caspak. Who is he?" +</P> + +<P> +"He is Tom," replied Ajor succinctly. +</P> + +<P> +"There is no such people," asserted the Band-lu quite truthfully, +toying with his spear in a most suggestive manner. +</P> + +<P> +"My name is Tom," I explained, "and I am from a country beyond Caspak." +I thought it best to propitiate him if possible, because of the +necessity of conserving ammunition as well as to avoid the loud alarm +of a shot which might bring other Band-lu warriors upon us. "I am from +America, a land of which you never heard, and I am seeking others of my +countrymen who are in Caspak and from whom I am lost. I have no quarrel +with you or your people. Let us go our way in peace." +</P> + +<P> +"You are going there?" he asked, and pointed toward the north. +</P> + +<P> +"I am," I replied. +</P> + +<P> +He was silent for several minutes, apparently weighing some thought in +his mind. At last he spoke. "What is that?" he asked. "And what is +that?" He pointed first at my rifle and then to my pistol. +</P> + +<P> +"They are weapons," I replied, "weapons which kill at a great +distance." I pointed to the women in the pool beneath us. "With this," +I said, tapping my pistol, "I could kill as many of those women as I +cared to, without moving a step from where we now stand." +</P> + +<P> +He looked his incredulity, but I went on. "And with this"—I weighed +my rifle at the balance in the palm of my right hand—"I could slay one +of those distant warriors." And I waved my left hand toward the tiny +figures of the hunters far to the north. +</P> + +<P> +The fellow laughed. "Do it," he cried derisively, "and then it may be +that I shall believe the balance of your strange story." +</P> + +<P> +"But I do not wish to kill any of them," I replied. "Why should I?" +</P> + +<P> +"Why not?" he insisted. "They would have killed you when they had you +prisoner. They would kill you now if they could get their hands on +you, and they would eat you into the bargain. But I know why you do +not try it—it is because you have spoken lies; your weapon will not +kill at a great distance. It is only a queerly wrought club. For all +I know, you are nothing more than a lowly Bo-lu." +</P> + +<P> +"Why should you wish me to kill your own people?" I asked. +</P> + +<P> +"They are no longer my people," he replied proudly. "Last night, in +the very middle of the night, the call came to me. Like that it came +into my head"—and he struck his hands together smartly once—"that I +had risen. I have been waiting for it and expecting it for a long +time; today I am a Kro-lu. Today I go into the coslupak" (unpeopled +country, or literally, no man's land) "between the Band-lu and the +Kro-lu, and there I fashion my bow and my arrows and my shield; there I +hunt the red deer for the leathern jerkin which is the badge of my new +estate. When these things are done, I can go to the chief of the +Kro-lu, and he dare not refuse me. That is why you may kill those low +Band-lu if you wish to live, for I am in a hurry. +</P> + +<P> +"But why do you wish to kill me?" I asked. +</P> + +<P> +He looked puzzled and finally gave it up. "I do not know," he +admitted. "It is the way in Caspak. If we do not kill, we shall be +killed, therefore it is wise to kill first whomever does not belong to +one's own people. This morning I hid in my cave till the others were +gone upon the hunt, for I knew that they would know at once that I had +become a Kro-lu and would kill me. They will kill me if they find me +in the coslupak; so will the Kro-lu if they come upon me before I have +won my Kro-lu weapons and jerkin. You would kill me if you could, and +that is the reason I know that you speak lies when you say that your +weapons will kill at a great distance. Would they, you would long +since have killed me. Come! I have no more time to waste in words. I +will spare the woman and take her with me to the Kro-lu, for she is +comely." And with that he advanced upon me with raised spear. +</P> + +<P> +My rifle was at my hip at the ready. He was so close that I did not +need to raise it to my shoulder, having but to pull the trigger to send +him into Kingdom Come whenever I chose; but yet I hesitated. It was +difficult to bring myself to take a human life. I could feel no enmity +toward this savage barbarian who acted almost as wholly upon instinct +as might a wild beast, and to the last moment I was determined to seek +some way to avoid what now seemed inevitable. Ajor stood at my +shoulder, her knife ready in her hand and a sneer on her lips at his +suggestion that he would take her with him. +</P> + +<P> +Just as I thought I should have to fire, a chorus of screams broke from +the women beneath us. I saw the man halt and glance downward, and +following his example my eyes took in the panic and its cause. The +women had, evidently, been quitting the pool and slowly returning +toward the caves, when they were confronted by a monstrous cave-lion +which stood directly between them and their cliffs in the center of the +narrow path that led down to the pool among the tumbled rocks. +Screaming, the women were rushing madly back to the pool. +</P> + +<P> +"It will do them no good," remarked the man, a trace of excitement in +his voice. "It will do them no good, for the lion will wait until they +come out and take as many as he can carry away; and there is one +there," he added, a trace of sadness in his tone, "whom I hoped would +soon follow me to the Kro-lu. Together have we come up from the +beginning." He raised his spear above his head and poised it ready to +hurl downward at the lion. "She is nearest to him," he muttered. "He +will get her and she will never come to me among the Kro-lu, or ever +thereafter. It is useless! No warrior lives who could hurl a weapon +so great a distance." +</P> + +<P> +But even as he spoke, I was leveling my rifle upon the great brute +below; and as he ceased speaking, I squeezed the trigger. My bullet +must have struck to a hair the point at which I had aimed, for it +smashed the brute's spine back of his shoulders and tore on through his +heart, dropping him dead in his tracks. For a moment the women were as +terrified by the report of the rifle as they had been by the menace of +the lion; but when they saw that the loud noise had evidently destroyed +their enemy, they came creeping cautiously back to examine the carcass. +</P> + +<P> +The man, toward whom I had immediately turned after firing, lest he +should pursue his threatened attack, stood staring at me in amazement +and admiration. +</P> + +<P> +"Why," he asked, "if you could do that, did you not kill me long +before?" +</P> + +<P> +"I told you," I replied, "that I had no quarrel with you. I do not +care to kill men with whom I have no quarrel." +</P> + +<P> +But he could not seem to get the idea through his head. "I can believe +now that you are not of Caspak," he admitted, "for no Caspakian would +have permitted such an opportunity to escape him." This, however, I +found later to be an exaggeration, as the tribes of the west coast and +even the Kro-lu of the east coast are far less bloodthirsty than he +would have had me believe. "And your weapon!" he continued. "You +spoke true words when I thought you spoke lies." And then, suddenly: +"Let us be friends!" +</P> + +<P> +I turned to Ajor. "Can I trust him?" I asked. +</P> + +<P> +"Yes," she replied. "Why not? Has he not asked to be friends?" +</P> + +<P> +I was not at the time well enough acquainted with Caspakian ways to +know that truthfulness and loyalty are two of the strongest +characteristics of these primitive people. They are not sufficiently +cultured to have become adept in hypocrisy, treason and dissimulation. +There are, of course, a few exceptions. +</P> + +<P> +"We can go north together," continued the warrior. "I will fight for +you, and you can fight for me. Until death will I serve you, for you +have saved So-al, whom I had given up as dead." He threw down his +spear and covered both his eyes with the palms of his two hands. I +looked inquiringly toward Ajor, who explained as best she could that +this was the form of the Caspakian oath of allegiance. "You need never +fear him after this," she concluded. +</P> + +<P> +"What should I do?" I asked. +</P> + +<P> +"Take his hands down from before his eyes and return his spear to him," +she explained. +</P> + +<P> +I did as she bade, and the man seemed very pleased. I then asked what +I should have done had I not wished to accept his friendship. They +told me that had I walked away, the moment that I was out of sight of +the warrior we would have become deadly enemies again. "But I could so +easily have killed him as he stood there defenseless!" I exclaimed. +</P> + +<P> +"Yes," replied the warrior, "but no man with good sense blinds his eyes +before one whom he does not trust." +</P> + +<P> +It was rather a decent compliment, and it taught me just how much I +might rely on the loyalty of my new friend. I was glad to have him +with us, for he knew the country and was evidently a fearless warrior. +I wished that I might have recruited a battalion like him. +</P> + +<P> +As the women were now approaching the cliffs, To-mar the warrior +suggested that we make our way to the valley before they could +intercept us, as they might attempt to detain us and were almost +certain to set upon Ajor. So we hastened down the narrow path, +reaching the foot of the cliffs but a short distance ahead of the +women. They called after us to stop; but we kept on at a rapid walk, +not wishing to have any trouble with them, which could only result in +the death of some of them. +</P> + +<P> +We had proceeded about a mile when we heard some one behind us calling +To-mar by name, and when we stopped and looked around, we saw a woman +running rapidly toward us. As she approached nearer I could see that +she was a very comely creature, and like all her sex that I had seen in +Caspak, apparently young. +</P> + +<P> +"It is So-al!" exclaimed To-mar. "Is she mad that she follows me thus?" +</P> + +<P> +In another moment the young woman stopped, panting, before us. She +paid not the slightest attention to Ajor or me; but devouring To-mar +with her sparkling eyes, she cried: "I have risen! I have risen!" +</P> + +<P> +"So-al!" was all that the man could say. +</P> + +<P> +"Yes," she went on, "the call came to me just before I quit the pool; +but I did not know that it had come to you. I can see it in your eyes, +To-mar, my To-mar! We shall go on together!" And she threw herself +into his arms. +</P> + +<P> +It was a very affecting sight, for it was evident that these two had +been mates for a long time and that they had each thought that they +were about to be separated by that strange law of evolution which holds +good in Caspak and which was slowly unfolding before my incredulous +mind. I did not then comprehend even a tithe of the wondrous process, +which goes on eternally within the confines of Caprona's barrier cliffs +nor am I any too sure that I do even now. +</P> + +<P> +To-mar explained to So-al that it was I who had killed the cave-lion +and saved her life, and that Ajor was my woman and thus entitled to the +same loyalty which was my due. +</P> + +<P> +At first Ajor and So-al were like a couple of stranger cats on a back +fence but soon they began to accept each other under something of an +armed truce, and later became fast friends. So-al was a mighty +fine-looking girl, built like a tigress as to strength and sinuosity, +but withal sweet and womanly. Ajor and I came to be very fond of her, +and she was, I think, equally fond of us. To-mar was very much of a +man—a savage, if you will, but none the less a man. +</P> + +<P> +Finding that traveling in company with To-mar made our journey both +easier and safer, Ajor and I did not continue on our way alone while +the novitiates delayed their approach to the Kro-lu country in order +that they might properly fit themselves in the matter of arms and +apparel, but remained with them. Thus we became well acquainted—to +such an extent that we looked forward with regret to the day when they +took their places among their new comrades and we should be forced to +continue upon our way alone. It was a matter of much concern to To-mar +that the Kro-lu would undoubtedly not receive Ajor and me in a friendly +manner, and that consequently we should have to avoid these people. +</P> + +<P> +It would have been very helpful to us could we have made friends with +them, as their country abutted directly upon that of the Galus. Their +friendship would have meant that Ajor's dangers were practically +passed, and that I had accomplished fully one-half of my long journey. +In view of what I had passed through, I often wondered what chance I +had to complete that journey in search of my friends. The further +south I should travel on the west side of the island, the more +frightful would the dangers become as I neared the stamping-grounds of +the more hideous reptilia and the haunts of the Alus and the Ho-lu, all +of which were at the southern half of the island; and then if I should +not find the members of my party, what was to become of me? I could +not live for long in any portion of Caspak with which I was familiar; +the moment my ammunition was exhausted, I should be as good as dead. +</P> + +<P> +There was a chance that the Galus would receive me; but even Ajor could +not say definitely whether they would or not, and even provided that +they would, could I retrace my steps from the beginning, after failing +to find my own people, and return to the far northern land of Galus? I +doubted it. However, I was learning from Ajor, who was more or less of +a fatalist, a philosophy which was as necessary in Caspak to peace of +mind as is faith to the devout Christian of the outer world. +</P> + +<BR><BR><BR> + +<A NAME="chap05"></A> +<H3 ALIGN="center"> +Chapter 5 +</H3> + +<P> +We were sitting before a little fire inside a safe grotto one night +shortly after we had quit the cliff-dwellings of the Band-lu, when +So-al raised a question which it had never occurred to me to propound +to Ajor. She asked her why she had left her own people and how she had +come so far south as the country of the Alus, where I had found her. +</P> + +<P> +At first Ajor hesitated to explain; but at last she consented, and for +the first time I heard the complete story of her origin and +experiences. For my benefit she entered into greater detail of +explanation than would have been necessary had I been a native +Caspakian. +</P> + +<P> +"I am a <i>cos-ata-lo</i>," commenced Ajor, and then she turned toward me. "A +<i>cos-ata-lo</i>, my Tom, is a woman" (<i>lo</i>) "who did not come from an egg and +thus on up <i>from the beginning</i>." (<i>Cor sva jo.</i>) "I was a babe at my +mother's breast. Only among the Galus are such, and then but +infrequently. The Wieroo get most of us; but my mother hid me until I +had attained such size that the Wieroo could not readily distinguish me +from one who had come up from the beginning. I knew both my mother and +my father, as only such as I may. My father is high chief among the +Galus. His name is Jor, and both he and my mother came up from the +beginning; but one of them, probably my mother, had completed the seven +cycles" (approximately seven hundred years), "with the result that +their offspring might be <i>cos-ata-lo</i>, or born as are all the children of +your race, my Tom, as you tell me is the fact. I was therefore apart +from my fellows in that my children would probably be as I, of a higher +state of evolution, and so I was sought by the men of my people; but +none of them appealed to me. I cared for none. The most persistent +was Du-seen, a huge warrior of whom my father stood in considerable +fear, since it was quite possible that Du-seen could wrest from him his +chieftainship of the Galus. He has a large following of the newer +Galus, those most recently come up from the Kro-lu, and as this class +is usually much more powerful numerically than the older Galus, and as +Du-seen's ambition knows no bounds, we have for a long time been +expecting him to find some excuse for a break with Jor the High Chief, +my father. +</P> + +<P> +"A further complication lay in the fact that Du-seen wanted me, while I +would have none of him, and then came evidence to my father's ears that +he was in league with the Wieroo; a hunter, returning late at night, +came trembling to my father, saying that he had seen Du-seen talking +with a Wieroo in a lonely spot far from the village, and that plainly +he had heard the words: 'If you will help me, I will help you—I will +deliver into your hands all <i>cos-ata-lo</i> among the Galus, now and +hereafter; but for that service you must slay Jor the High Chief and +bring terror and confusion to his followers.' +</P> + +<P> +"Now, when my father heard this, he was angry; but he was also +afraid—afraid for me, who am cos-ata-lo. He called me to him and told +me what he had heard, pointing out two ways in which we might frustrate +Du-seen. The first was that I go to Du-seen as his mate, after which +he would be loath to give me into the hands of the Wieroo or to further +abide by the wicked compact he had made—a compact which would doom his +own offspring, who would doubtless be as am I, their mother. The +alternative was flight until Du-seen should have been overcome and +punished. I chose the latter and fled toward the south. Beyond the +confines of the Galu country is little danger from the Wieroo, who seek +ordinarily only Galus of the highest orders. There are two excellent +reasons for this: One is that from the beginning of time jealousy has +existed between the Wieroo and the Galus as to which would eventually +dominate the world. It seems generally conceded that that race which +first reaches a point of evolution which permits them to produce young +of their own species and of both sexes must dominate all other +creatures. The Wieroo first began to produce their own kind—after +which evolution from Galu to Wieroo ceased gradually until now it is +unknown; but the Wieroo produce only males—which is why they steal our +female young, and by stealing <i>cos-ata-lo</i> they increase their own +chances of eventually reproducing both sexes and at the same time +lessen ours. Already the Galus produce both male and female; but so +carefully do the Wieroo watch us that few of the males ever grow to +manhood, while even fewer are the females that are not stolen away. It +is indeed a strange condition, for while our greatest enemies hate and +fear us, they dare not exterminate us, knowing that they too would +become extinct but for us. +</P> + +<P> +"Ah, but could we once get a start, I am sure that when all were true +<i>cos-ata-lo</i> there would have been evolved at last the true dominant race +before which all the world would be forced to bow." +</P> + +<P> +Ajor always spoke of the world as though nothing existed beyond Caspak. +She could not seem to grasp the truth of my origin or the fact that +there were countless other peoples outside her stern barrier-cliffs. +She apparently felt that I came from an entirely different world. +Where it was and how I came to Caspak from it were matters quite beyond +her with which she refused to trouble her pretty head. +</P> + +<P> +"Well," she continued, "and so I ran away to hide, intending to pass +the cliffs to the south of Galu and find a retreat in the Kro-lu +country. It would be dangerous, but there seemed no other way. +</P> + +<P> +"The third night I took refuge in a large cave in the cliffs at the +edge of my own country; upon the following day I would cross over into +the Kro-lu country, where I felt that I should be reasonably safe from +the Wieroo, though menaced by countless other dangers. However, to a +<i>cos-ata-lo</i> any fate is preferable to that of falling into the clutches +of the frightful Wieroo, from whose land none returns. +</P> + +<P> +"I had been sleeping peacefully for several hours when I was awakened +by a slight noise within the cavern. The moon was shining brightly, +illumining the entrance, against which I saw silhouetted the dread +figure of a Wieroo. There was no escape. The cave was shallow, the +entrance narrow. I lay very still, hoping against hope, that the +creature had but paused here to rest and might soon depart without +discovering me; yet all the while I knew that he came seeking me. +</P> + +<P> +"I waited, scarce breathing, watching the thing creep stealthily toward +me, its great eyes luminous in the darkness of the cave's interior, and +at last I knew that those eyes were directed upon me, for the Wieroo +can see in the darkness better than even the lion or the tiger. But a +few feet separated us when I sprang to my feet and dashed madly toward +my menacer in a vain effort to dodge past him and reach the outside +world. It was madness of course, for even had I succeeded temporarily, +the Wieroo would have but followed and swooped down upon me from above. +As it was, he reached forth and seized me, and though I struggled, he +overpowered me. In the duel his long, white robe was nearly torn from +him, and he became very angry, so that he trembled and beat his wings +together in his rage. +</P> + +<P> +"He asked me my name; but I would not answer him, and that angered him +still more. At last he dragged me to the entrance of the cave, lifted +me in his arms, spread his great wings and leaping into the air, +flapped dismally through the night. I saw the moonlit landscape +sliding away beneath me, and then we were out above the sea and on our +way to Oo-oh, the country of the Wieroo. +</P> + +<P> +"The dim outlines of Oo-oh were unfolding below us when there came from +above a loud whirring of giant wings. The Wieroo and I glanced up +simultaneously, to see a pair of huge jo-oos" (flying +reptiles—pterodactyls) "swooping down upon us. The Wieroo wheeled and +dropped almost to sea-level, and then raced southward in an effort to +outdistance our pursuers. The great creatures, notwithstanding their +enormous weight, are swift on their wings; but the Wieroo are swifter. +Even with my added weight, the creature that bore me maintained his +lead, though he could not increase it. Faster than the fastest wind we +raced through the night, southward along the coast. Sometimes we rose +to great heights, where the air was chill and the world below but a +blur of dim outlines; but always the jo-oos stuck behind us. +</P> + +<P> +"I knew that we had covered a great distance, for the rush of the wind +by my face attested the speed of our progress, but I had no idea where +we were when at last I realized that the Wieroo was weakening. One of +the jo-oos gained on us and succeeded in heading us, so that my captor +had to turn in toward the coast. Further and further they forced him +to the left; lower and lower he sank. More labored was his breathing, +and weaker the stroke of his once powerful wings. We were not ten feet +above the ground when they overtook us, and at the edge of a forest. +One of them seized the Wieroo by his right wing, and in an effort to +free himself, he loosed his grasp upon me, dropping me to earth. Like +a frightened ecca I leaped to my feet and raced for the sheltering +sanctuary of the forest, where I knew neither could follow or seize me. +Then I turned and looked back to see two great reptiles tear my +abductor asunder and devour him on the spot. +</P> + +<P> +"I was saved; yet I felt that I was lost. How far I was from the +country of the Galus I could not guess; nor did it seem probable that I +ever could make my way in safety to my native land. +</P> + +<P> +"Day was breaking; soon the carnivora would stalk forth for their first +kill; I was armed only with my knife. About me was a strange +landscape—the flowers, the trees, the grasses, even, were different +from those of my northern world, and presently there appeared before me +a creature fully as hideous as the Wieroo—a hairy manthing that barely +walked erect. I shuddered, and then I fled. Through the hideous +dangers that my forebears had endured in the earlier stages of their +human evolution I fled; and always pursuing was the hairy monster that +had discovered me. Later he was joined by others of his kind. They +were the speechless men, the Alus, from whom you rescued me, my Tom. +From then on, you know the story of my adventures, and from the first, +I would endure them all again because they led me to you!" +</P> + +<P> +It was very nice of her to say that, and I appreciated it. I felt that +she was a mighty nice little girl whose friendship anyone might be glad +to have; but I wished that when she touched me, those peculiar thrills +would not run through me. It was most discomforting, because it +reminded me of love; and I knew that I never could love this half-baked +little barbarian. I was very much interested in her account of the +Wieroo, which up to this time I had considered a purely mythological +creature; but Ajor shuddered so at even the veriest mention of the name +that I was loath to press the subject upon her, and so the Wieroo still +remained a mystery to me. +</P> + +<P> +While the Wieroo interested me greatly, I had little time to think +about them, as our waking hours were filled with the necessities of +existence—the constant battle for survival which is the chief +occupation of Caspakians. To-mar and So-al were now about fitted for +their advent into Kro-lu society and must therefore leave us, as we +could not accompany them without incurring great danger ourselves and +running the chance of endangering them; but each swore to be always our +friend and assured us that should we need their aid at any time we had +but to ask it; nor could I doubt their sincerity, since we had been so +instrumental in bringing them safely upon their journey toward the +Kro-lu village. +</P> + +<P> +This was our last day together. In the afternoon we should separate, +To-mar and So-al going directly to the Kro-lu village, while Ajor and I +made a detour to avoid a conflict with the archers. The former both +showed evidence of nervous apprehension as the time approached for them +to make their entry into the village of their new people, and yet both +were very proud and happy. They told us that they would be well +received as additions to a tribe always are welcomed, and the more so +as the distance from the beginning increased, the higher tribes or +races being far weaker numerically than the lower. The southern end of +the island fairly swarms with the Ho-lu, or apes; next above these are +the Alus, who are slightly fewer in number than the Ho-lu; and again +there are fewer Bo-lu than Alus, and fewer Sto-lu than Bo-lu. Thus it +goes until the Kro-lu are fewer in number than any of the others; and +here the law reverses, for the Galus outnumber the Kro-lu. As Ajor +explained it to me, the reason for this is that as evolution +practically ceases with the Galus, there is no less among them on this +score, for even the <i>cos-ata-lo</i> are still considered Galus and remain +with them. And Galus come up both from the west and east coasts. +There are, too, fewer carnivorous reptiles at the north end of the +island, and not so many of the great and ferocious members of the cat +family as take their hideous toll of life among the races further south. +</P> + +<P> +By now I was obtaining some idea of the Caspakian scheme of evolution, +which partly accounted for the lack of young among the races I had so +far seen. Coming up from the beginning, the Caspakian passes, during a +single existence, through the various stages of evolution, or at least +many of them, through which the human race has passed during the +countless ages since life first stirred upon a new world; but the +question which continued to puzzle me was: What creates life at the +beginning, cor sva jo? +</P> + +<P> +I had noticed that as we traveled northward from the Alus' country the +land had gradually risen until we were now several hundred feet above +the level of the inland sea. Ajor told me that the Galus country was +still higher and considerably colder, which accounted for the scarcity +of reptiles. The change in form and kinds of the lower animals was +even more marked than the evolutionary stages of man. The diminutive +ecca, or small horse, became a rough-coated and sturdy little pony in +the Kro-lu country. I saw a greater number of small lions and tigers, +though many of the huge ones still persisted, while the woolly mammoth +was more in evidence, as were several varieties of the Labyrinthadonta. +These creatures, from which God save me, I should have expected to find +further south; but for some unaccountable reason they gain their +greatest bulk in the Kro-lu and Galu countries, though fortunately they +are rare. I rather imagine that they are a very early life which is +rapidly nearing extinction in Caspak, though wherever they are found, +they constitute a menace to all forms of life. +</P> + +<P> +It was mid-afternoon when To-mar and So-al bade us good-bye. We were +not far from Kro-lu village; in fact, we had approached it much closer +than we had intended, and now Ajor and I were to make a detour toward +the sea while our companions went directly in search of the Kro-lu +chief. +</P> + +<P> +Ajor and I had gone perhaps a mile or two and were just about to emerge +from a dense wood when I saw that ahead of us which caused me to draw +back into concealment, at the same time pushing Ajor behind me. What I +saw was a party of Band-lu warriors—large, fierce-appearing men. From +the direction of their march I saw that they were returning to their +caves, and that if we remained where we were, they would pass without +discovering us. +</P> + +<P> +Presently Ajor nudged me. "They have a prisoner," she whispered. "He +is a Kro-lu." +</P> + +<P> +And then I saw him, the first fully developed Kro-lu I had seen. He was +a fine-looking savage, tall and straight with a regal carriage. To-mar +was a handsome fellow; but this Kro-lu showed plainly in his every +physical attribute a higher plane of evolution. While To-mar was just +entering the Kro-lu sphere, this man, it seemed to me, must be close +indeed to the next stage of his development, which would see him an +envied Galu. +</P> + +<P> +"They will kill him?" I whispered to Ajor. +</P> + +<P> +"The dance of death," she replied, and I shuddered, so recently had I +escaped the same fate. It seemed cruel that one who must have passed +safely up through all the frightful stages of human evolution within +Caspak, should die at the very foot of his goal. I raised my rifle to +my shoulder and took careful aim at one of the Band-lu. If I hit him, +I would hit two, for another was directly behind the first. +</P> + +<P> +Ajor touched my arm. "What would you do?" she asked. "They are all +our enemies." +</P> + +<P> +"I am going to save him from the dance of death," I replied, "enemy or +no enemy," and I squeezed the trigger. At the report, the two Band-lu +lunged forward upon their faces. I handed my rifle to Ajor, and +drawing my pistol, stepped out in full view of the startled party. The +Band-lu did not run away as had some of the lower orders of Caspakians +at the sound of the rifle. Instead, the moment they saw me, they let +out a series of demoniac war-cries, and raising their spears above +their heads, charged me. +</P> + +<P> +The Kro-lu stood silent and statuesque, watching the proceedings. He +made no attempt to escape, though his feet were not bound and none of +the warriors remained to guard him. There were ten of the Band-lu +coming for me. I dropped three of them with my pistol as rapidly as a +man might count by three, and then my rifle spoke close to my left +shoulder, and another of them stumbled and rolled over and over upon +the ground. Plucky little Ajor! She had never fired a shot before in +all her life, though I had taught her to sight and aim and how to +squeeze the trigger instead of pulling it. She had practiced these new +accomplishments often, but little had I thought they would make a +marksman of her so quickly. +</P> + +<P> +With six of their fellows put out of the fight so easily, the remaining +six sought cover behind some low bushes and commenced a council of war. +I wished that they would go away, as I had no ammunition to waste, and +I was fearful that should they institute another charge, some of them +would reach us, for they were already quite close. Suddenly one of +them rose and launched his spear. It was the most marvelous exhibition +of speed I have ever witnessed. It seemed to me that he had scarce +gained an upright position when the weapon was half-way upon its +journey, speeding like an arrow toward Ajor. And then it was, with +that little life in danger, that I made the best shot I have ever made +in my life! I took no conscious aim; it was as though my subconscious +mind, impelled by a stronger power even than that of self-preservation, +directed my hand. Ajor was in danger! Simultaneously with the thought +my pistol flew to position, a streak of incandescent powder marked the +path of the bullet from its muzzle; and the spear, its point shattered, +was deflected from its path. With a howl of dismay the six Band-lu +rose from their shelter and raced away toward the south. +</P> + +<P> +I turned toward Ajor. She was very white and wide-eyed, for the +clutching fingers of death had all but seized her; but a little smile +came to her lips and an expression of great pride to her eyes. "My +Tom!" she said, and took my hand in hers. That was all—"My Tom!" and +a pressure of the hand. Her Tom! Something stirred within my bosom. +Was it exaltation or was it consternation? Impossible! I turned away +almost brusquely. +</P> + +<P> +"Come!" I said, and strode off toward the Kro-lu prisoner. +</P> + +<P> +The Kro-lu stood watching us with stolid indifference. I presume that +he expected to be killed; but if he did, he showed no outward sign of +fear. His eyes, indicating his greatest interest, were fixed upon my +pistol or the rifle which Ajor still carried. I cut his bonds with my +knife. As I did so, an expression of surprise tinged and animated the +haughty reserve of his countenance. He eyed me quizzically. +</P> + +<P> +"What are you going to do with me?" he asked. +</P> + +<P> +"You are free," I replied. "Go home, if you wish." +</P> + +<P> +"Why don't you kill me?" he inquired. "I am defenseless." +</P> + +<P> +"Why should I kill you? I have risked my life and that of this young +lady to save your life. Why, therefore should I now take it?" Of +course, I didn't say "young lady" as there is no Caspakian equivalent +for that term; but I have to allow myself considerable latitude in the +translation of Caspakian conversations. To speak always of a beautiful +young girl as a "she" may be literal; but it seems far from gallant. +</P> + +<P> +The Kro-lu concentrated his steady, level gaze upon me for at least a +full minute. Then he spoke again. +</P> + +<P> +"Who are you, man of strange skins?" he asked. "Your she is Galu; but +you are neither Galu nor Kro-lu nor Band-lu, nor any other sort of man +which I have seen before. Tell me from whence comes so mighty a +warrior and so generous a foe." +</P> + +<P> +"It is a long story," I replied, "but suffice it to say that I am not +of Caspak. I am a stranger here, and—let this sink in—I am not a +foe. I have no wish to be an enemy of any man in Caspak, with the +possible exception of the Galu warrior Du-seen." +</P> + +<P> +"Du-seen!" he exclaimed. "You are an enemy of Du-seen? And why?" +</P> + +<P> +"Because he would harm Ajor," I replied. "You know him?" +</P> + +<P> +"He cannot know him," said Ajor. "Du-seen rose from the Kro-lu long +ago, taking a new name, as all do when they enter a new sphere. He +cannot know him, as there is no intercourse between the Kro-lu and the +Galu." +</P> + +<P> +The warrior smiled. "Du-seen rose not so long ago," he said, "that I +do not recall him well, and recently he has taken it upon himself to +abrogate the ancient laws of Caspak; he had had intercourse with the +Kro-lu. Du-seen would be chief of the Galus, and he has come to the +Kro-lu for help." +</P> + +<P> +Ajor was aghast. The thing was incredible. Never had Kro-lu and Galu +had friendly relations; by the savage laws of Caspak they were deadly +enemies, for only so can the several races maintain their individuality. +</P> + +<P> +"Will the Kro-lu join him?" asked Ajor. "Will they invade the country +of Jor my father?" +</P> + +<P> +"The younger Kro-lu favor the plan," replied the warrior, "since they +believe they will thus become Galus immediately. They hope to span the +long years of change through which they must pass in the ordinary +course of events and at a single stride become Galus. We of the older +Kro-lu tell them that though they occupy the land of the Galu and wear +the skins and ornaments of the golden people, still they will not be +Galus till the time arrives that they are ripe to rise. We also tell +them that even then they will never become a true Galu race, since +there will still be those among them who can never rise. It is all +right to raid the Galu country occasionally for plunder, as our people +do; but to attempt to conquer it and hold it is madness. For my part, +I have been content to wait until the call came to me. I feel that it +cannot now be long." +</P> + +<P> +"What is your name?" asked Ajor. +</P> + +<P> +"Chal-az," replied the man. +</P> + +<P> +"You are chief of the Kro-lu?" Ajor continued. +</P> + +<P> +"No, it is Al-tan who is chief of the Kro-lu of the east," answered +Chal-az. +</P> + +<P> +"And he is against this plan to invade my father's country?" +</P> + +<P> +"Unfortunately he is rather in favor of it," replied the man, "since he +has about come to the conclusion that he is batu. He has been chief +ever since, before I came up from the Band-lu, and I can see no change +in him in all those years. In fact, he still appears to be more +Band-lu than Kro-lu. However, he is a good chief and a mighty warrior, +and if Du-seen persuades him to his cause, the Galus may find +themselves under a Kro-lu chieftain before long—Du-seen as well as the +others, for Al-tan would never consent to occupy a subordinate +position, and once he plants a victorious foot in Galu, he will not +withdraw it without a struggle." +</P> + +<P> +I asked them what batu meant, as I had not before heard the word. +Literally translated, it is equivalent to through, finished, done-for, +as applied to an individual's evolutionary progress in Caspak, and with +this information was developed the interesting fact that not every +individual is capable of rising through every stage to that of Galu. +Some never progress beyond the Alu stage; others stop as Bo-lu, as +Sto-lu, as Band-lu or as Kro-lu. The Ho-lu of the first generation may +rise to become Alus; the Alus of the second generation may become +Bo-lu, while it requires three generations of Bo-lu to become Band-lu, +and so on until Kro-lu's parent on one side must be of the sixth +generation. +</P> + +<P> +It was not entirely plain to me even with this explanation, since I +couldn't understand how there could be different generations of peoples +who apparently had no offspring. Yet I was commencing to get a slight +glimmer of the strange laws which govern propagation and evolution in +this weird land. Already I knew that the warm pools which always lie +close to every tribal abiding-place were closely linked with the +Caspakian scheme of evolution, and that the daily immersion of the +females in the greenish slimy water was in response to some natural +law, since neither pleasure nor cleanliness could be derived from what +seemed almost a religious rite. Yet I was still at sea; nor, +seemingly, could Ajor enlighten me, since she was compelled to use +words which I could not understand and which it was impossible for her +to explain the meanings of. +</P> + +<P> +As we stood talking, we were suddenly startled by a commotion in the +bushes and among the boles of the trees surrounding us, and +simultaneously a hundred Kro-lu warriors appeared in a rough circle +about us. They greeted Chal-az with a volley of questions as they +approached slowly from all sides, their heavy bows fitted with long, +sharp arrows. Upon Ajor and me they looked with covetousness in the +one instance and suspicion in the other; but after they had heard +Chal-az's story, their attitude was more friendly. A huge savage did +all the talking. He was a mountain of a man, yet perfectly +proportioned. +</P> + +<P> +"This is Al-tan the chief," said Chal-az by way of introduction. Then +he told something of my story, and Al-tan asked me many questions of +the land from which I came. The warriors crowded around close to hear +my replies, and there were many expressions of incredulity as I spoke +of what was to them another world, of the yacht which had brought me +over vast waters, and of the plane that had borne me Jo-oo-like over +the summit of the barrier-cliffs. It was the mention of the +hydroaeroplane which precipitated the first outspoken skepticism, and +then Ajor came to my defense. +</P> + +<P> +"I saw it with my own eyes!" she exclaimed. "I saw him flying through +the air in battle with a Jo-oo. The Alus were chasing me, and they saw +and ran away." +</P> + +<P> +"Whose is this she?" demanded Al-tan suddenly, his eyes fixed fiercely +upon Ajor. +</P> + +<P> +For a moment there was silence. Ajor looked up at me, a hurt and +questioning expression on her face. "Whose she is this?" repeated +Al-tan. +</P> + +<P> +"She is mine," I replied, though what force it was that impelled me to +say it I could not have told; but an instant later I was glad that I +had spoken the words, for the reward of Ajor's proud and happy face was +reward indeed. +</P> + +<P> +Al-tan eyed her for several minutes and then turned to me. "Can you +keep her?" he asked, just the tinge of a sneer upon his face. +</P> + +<P> +I laid my palm upon the grip of my pistol and answered that I could. +He saw the move, glanced at the butt of the automatic where it +protruded from its holster, and smiled. Then he turned and raising his +great bow, fitted an arrow and drew the shaft far back. His warriors, +supercilious smiles upon their faces, stood silently watching him. His +bow was the longest and the heaviest among them all. A mighty man +indeed must he be to bend it; yet Al-tan drew the shaft back until the +stone point touched his left forefinger, and he did it with consummate +ease. Then he raised the shaft to the level of his right eye, held it +there for an instant and released it. When the arrow stopped, half its +length protruded from the opposite side of a six-inch tree fifty feet +away. Al-tan and his warriors turned toward me with expressions of +immense satisfaction upon their faces, and then, apparently for Ajor's +benefit, the chieftain swaggered to and fro a couple of times, swinging +his great arms and his bulky shoulders for all the world like a drunken +prize-fighter at a beach dancehall. +</P> + +<P> +I saw that some reply was necessary, and so in a single motion, I drew +my gun, dropped it on the still quivering arrow and pulled the trigger. +At the sound of the report, the Kro-lu leaped back and raised their +weapons; but as I was smiling, they took heart and lowered them again, +following my eyes to the tree; the shaft of their chief was gone, and +through the bole was a little round hole marking the path of my bullet. +It was a good shot if I do say it myself, "as shouldn't" but necessity +must have guided that bullet; I simply had to make a good shot, that I +might immediately establish my position among those savage and warlike +Caspakians of the sixth sphere. That it had its effect was immediately +noticeable, but I am none too sure that it helped my cause with Al-tan. +Whereas he might have condescended to tolerate me as a harmless and +interesting curiosity, he now, by the change in his expression, +appeared to consider me in a new and unfavorable light. Nor can I +wonder, knowing this type as I did, for had I not made him ridiculous +in the eyes of his warriors, beating him at his own game? What king, +savage or civilized, could condone such impudence? Seeing his black +scowls, I deemed it expedient, especially on Ajor's account, to +terminate the interview and continue upon our way; but when I would +have done so, Al-tan detained us with a gesture, and his warriors +pressed around us. +</P> + +<P> +"What is the meaning of this?" I demanded, and before Al-tan could +reply, Chal-az raised his voice in our behalf. +</P> + +<P> +"Is this the gratitude of a Kro-lu chieftain, Al-tan," he asked, "to +one who has served you by saving one of your warriors from the +enemy—saving him from the death dance of the Band-lu?" +</P> + +<P> +Al-tan was silent for a moment, and then his brow cleared, and the +faint imitation of a pleasant expression struggled for existence as he +said: "The stranger will not be harmed. I wished only to detain him +that he may be feasted tonight in the village of Al-tan the Kro-lu. In +the morning he may go his way. Al-tan will not hinder him." +</P> + +<P> +I was not entirely reassured; but I wanted to see the interior of the +Kro-lu village, and anyway I knew that if Al-tan intended treachery I +would be no more in his power in the morning than I now was—in fact, +during the night I might find opportunity to escape with Ajor, while at +the instant neither of us could hope to escape unscathed from the +encircling warriors. Therefore, in order to disarm him of any thought +that I might entertain suspicion as to his sincerity, I promptly and +courteously accepted his invitation. His satisfaction was evident, and +as we set off toward his village, he walked beside me, asking many +questions as to the country from which I came, its peoples and their +customs. He seemed much mystified by the fact that we could walk +abroad by day or night without fear of being devoured by wild beasts or +savage reptiles, and when I told him of the great armies which we +maintained, his simple mind could not grasp the fact that they existed +solely for the slaughtering of human beings. +</P> + +<P> +"I am glad," he said, "that I do not dwell in your country among such +savage peoples. Here, in Caspak, men fight with men when they +meet—men of different races—but their weapons are first for the +slaying of beasts in the chase and in defense. We do not fashion +weapons solely for the killing of man as do your peoples. Your country +must indeed be a savage country, from which you are fortunate to have +escaped to the peace and security of Caspak." +</P> + +<P> +Here was a new and refreshing viewpoint; nor could I take exception to +it after what I had told Al-tan of the great war which had been raging +in Europe for over two years before I left home. +</P> + +<P> +On the march to the Kro-lu village we were continually stalked by +innumerable beasts of prey, and three times we were attacked by +frightful creatures; but Al-tan took it all as a matter of course, +rushing forward with raised spear or sending a heavy shaft into the +body of the attacker and then returning to our conversation as though +no interruption had occurred. Twice were members of his band mauled, +and one was killed by a huge and bellicose rhinoceros; but the instant +the action was over, it was as though it never had occurred. The dead +man was stripped of his belongings and left where he had died; the +carnivora would take care of his burial. The trophies that these +Kro-lu left to the meat-eaters would have turned an English big-game +hunter green with envy. They did, it is true, cut all the edible parts +from the rhino and carry them home; but already they were pretty well +weighted down with the spoils of the chase, and only the fact that they +are particularly fond of rhino-meat caused them to do so. +</P> + +<P> +They left the hide on the pieces they selected, as they use it for +sandals, shield-covers, the hilts of their knives and various other +purposes where tough hide is desirable. I was much interested in their +shields, especially after I saw one used in defense against the attack +of a saber-tooth tiger. The huge creature had charged us without +warning from a clump of dense bushes where it was lying up after +eating. It was met with an avalanche of spears, some of which passed +entirely through its body, with such force were they hurled. The +charge was from a very short distance, requiring the use of the spear +rather than the bow and arrow; but after the launching of the spears, +the men not directly in the path of the charge sent bolt after bolt +into the great carcass with almost incredible rapidity. The beast, +screaming with pain and rage, bore down upon Chal-az while I stood +helpless with my rifle for fear of hitting one of the warriors who were +closing in upon it. But Chal-az was ready. Throwing aside his bow, he +crouched behind his large oval shield, in the center of which was a +hole about six inches in diameter. The shield was held by tight loops +to his left arm, while in his right hand he grasped his heavy knife. +Bristling with spears and arrows, the great cat hurled itself upon the +shield, and down went Chal-az upon his back with the shield entirely +covering him. The tiger clawed and bit at the heavy rhinoceros hide +with which the shield was faced, while Chal-az, through the round hole +in the shield's center, plunged his blade repeatedly into the vitals of +the savage animal. Doubtless the battle would have gone to Chal-az +even though I had not interfered; but the moment that I saw a clean +opening, with no Kro-lu beyond, I raised my rifle and killed the beast. +</P> + +<P> +When Chal-az arose, he glanced at the sky and remarked that it looked +like rain. The others already had resumed the march toward the +village. The incident was closed. For some unaccountable reason the +whole thing reminded me of a friend who once shot a cat in his +backyard. For three weeks he talked of nothing else. +</P> + +<P> +It was almost dark when we reached the village—a large palisaded +enclosure of several hundred leaf-thatched huts set in groups of from +two to seven. The huts were hexagonal in form, and where grouped were +joined so that they resembled the cells of a bee-hive. One hut meant a +warrior and his mate, and each additional hut in a group indicated an +additional female. The palisade which surrounded the village was of +logs set close together and woven into a solid wall with tough creepers +which were planted at their base and trained to weave in and out to +bind the logs together. The logs slanted outward at an angle of about +thirty degrees, in which position they were held by shorter logs +embedded in the ground at right angles to them and with their upper +ends supporting the longer pieces a trifle above their centers of +equilibrium. Along the top of the palisade sharpened stakes had been +driven at all sorts of angles. +</P> + +<P> +The only opening into the inclosure was through a small aperture three +feet wide and three feet high, which was closed from the inside by logs +about six feet long laid horizontally, one upon another, between the +inside face of the palisade and two other braced logs which paralleled +the face of the wall upon the inside. +</P> + +<P> +As we entered the village, we were greeted by a not unfriendly crowd of +curious warriors and women, to whom Chal-az generously explained the +service we had rendered him, whereupon they showered us with the most +well-meant attentions, for Chal-az, it seemed, was a most popular +member of the tribe. Necklaces of lion- and tiger-teeth, bits of dried +meat, finely tanned hides and earthen pots, beautifully decorated, they +thrust upon us until we were loaded down, and all the while Al-tan +glared balefully upon us, seemingly jealous of the attentions heaped +upon us because we had served Chal-az. +</P> + +<P> +At last we reached a hut that they set apart for us, and there we +cooked our meat and some vegetables the women brought us, and had milk +from cows—the first I had had in Caspak—and cheese from the milk of +wild goats, with honey and thin bread made from wheat flour of their +own grinding, and grapes and the fermented juice of grapes. It was +quite the most wonderful meal I had eaten since I quit the <i>Toreador</i> and +Bowen J. Tyler's colored chef, who could make pork-chops taste like +chicken, and chicken taste like heaven. +</P> + +<BR><BR><BR> + +<A NAME="chap06"></A> +<H3 ALIGN="center"> +Chapter 6 +</H3> + +<P> +After dinner I rolled a cigaret and stretched myself at ease upon a +pile of furs before the doorway, with Ajor's head pillowed in my lap +and a feeling of great content pervading me. It was the first time +since my plane had topped the barrier-cliffs of Caspak that I had felt +any sense of peace or security. My hand wandered to the velvet cheek +of the girl I had claimed as mine, and to her luxuriant hair and the +golden fillet which bound it close to her shapely head. Her slender +fingers groping upward sought mine and drew them to her lips, and then +I gathered her in my arms and crushed her to me, smothering her mouth +with a long, long kiss. It was the first time that passion had tinged +my intercourse with Ajor. We were alone, and the hut was ours until +morning. +</P> + +<P> +But now from beyond the palisade in the direction of the main gate came +the hallooing of men and the answering calls and queries of the guard. +We listened. Returning hunters, no doubt. We heard them enter the +village amidst the barking dogs. I have forgotten to mention the dogs +of Kro-lu. The village swarmed with them, gaunt, wolflike creatures +that guarded the herd by day when it grazed without the palisade, ten +dogs to a cow. By night the cows were herded in an outer inclosure +roofed against the onslaughts of the carnivorous cats; and the dogs, +with the exception of a few, were brought into the village; these few +well-tested brutes remained with the herd. During the day they fed +plentifully upon the beasts of prey which they killed in protection of +the herd, so that their keep amounted to nothing at all. +</P> + +<P> +Shortly after the commotion at the gate had subsided, Ajor and I arose +to enter the hut, and at the same time a warrior appeared from one of +the twisted alleys which, lying between the irregularly placed huts and +groups of huts, form the streets of the Kro-lu village. The fellow +halted before us and addressed me, saying that Al-tan desired my +presence at his hut. The wording of the invitation and the manner of +the messenger threw me entirely off my guard, so cordial was the one +and respectful the other, and the result was that I went willingly, +telling Ajor that I would return presently. I had laid my arms and +ammunition aside as soon as we had taken over the hut, and I left them +with Ajor now, as I had noticed that aside from their hunting-knives +the men of Kro-lu bore no weapons about the village streets. There was +an atmosphere of peace and security within that village that I had not +hoped to experience within Caspak, and after what I had passed through, +it must have cast a numbing spell over my faculties of judgment and +reason. I had eaten of the lotus-flower of safety; dangers no longer +threatened for they had ceased to be. +</P> + +<P> +The messenger led me through the labyrinthine alleys to an open plaza +near the center of the village. At one end of this plaza was a long +hut, much the largest that I had yet seen, before the door of which +were many warriors. I could see that the interior was lighted and that +a great number of men were gathered within. The dogs about the plaza +were as thick as fleas, and those I approached closely evinced a strong +desire to devour me, their noses evidently apprising them of the fact +that I was of an alien race, since they paid no attention whatever to +my companion. Once inside the council-hut, for such it appeared to be, +I found a large concourse of warriors seated, or rather squatted, +around the floor. At one end of the oval space which the warriors left +down the center of the room stood Al-tan and another warrior whom I +immediately recognized as a Galu, and then I saw that there were many +Galus present. About the walls were a number of flaming torches stuck +in holes in a clay plaster which evidently served the purpose of +preventing the inflammable wood and grasses of which the hut was +composed from being ignited by the flames. Lying about among the +warriors or wandering restlessly to and fro were a number of savage +dogs. +</P> + +<P> +The warriors eyed me curiously as I entered, especially the Galus, and +then I was conducted into the center of the group and led forward +toward Al-tan. As I advanced I felt one of the dogs sniffing at my +heels, and of a sudden a great brute leaped upon my back. As I turned +to thrust it aside before its fangs found a hold upon me, I beheld a +huge Airedale leaping frantically about me. The grinning jaws, the +half-closed eyes, the back-laid ears spoke to me louder than might the +words of man that here was no savage enemy but a joyous friend, and +then I recognized him, and fell to one knee and put my arms about his +neck while he whined and cried with joy. It was Nobs, dear old Nobs. +Bowen Tyler's Nobs, who had loved me next to his master. +</P> + +<P> +"Where is the master of this dog?" I asked, turning toward Al-tan. +</P> + +<P> +The chieftain inclined his head toward the Galu standing at his side. +"He belongs to Du-seen the Galu," he replied. +</P> + +<P> +"He belongs to Bowen J. Tyler, Jr., of Santa Monica," I retorted, "and +I want to know where his master is." +</P> + +<P> +The Galu shrugged. "The dog is mine," he said. "He came to me +cor-sva-jo, and he is unlike any dog in Caspak, being kind and docile +and yet a killer when aroused. I would not part with him. I do not +know the man of whom you speak." +</P> + +<P> +So this was Du-seen! This was the man from whom Ajor had fled. I +wondered if he knew that she was here. I wondered if they had sent for +me because of her; but after they had commenced to question me, my mind +was relieved; they did not mention Ajor. Their interest seemed +centered upon the strange world from which I had come, my journey to +Caspak and my intentions now that I had arrived. I answered them +frankly as I had nothing to conceal and assured them that my only wish +was to find my friends and return to my own country. In the Galu +Du-seen and his warriors I saw something of the explanation of the term +"golden race" which is applied to them, for their ornaments and weapons +were either wholly of beaten gold or heavily decorated with the +precious metal. They were a very imposing set of men—tall and +straight and handsome. About their heads were bands of gold like that +which Ajor wore, and from their left shoulders depended the +leopard-tails of the Galus. In addition to the deer-skin tunic which +constituted the major portion of their apparel, each carried a light +blanket of barbaric yet beautiful design—the first evidence of weaving +I had seen in Caspak. Ajor had had no blanket, having lost it during +her flight from the attentions of Du-seen; nor was she so heavily +incrusted with gold as these male members of her tribe. +</P> + +<P> +The audience must have lasted fully an hour when Al-tan signified that +I might return to my hut. All the time Nobs had lain quietly at my +feet; but the instant that I turned to leave, he was up and after me. +Du-seen called to him; but the terrier never even so much as looked in +his direction. I had almost reached the doorway leading from the +council-hall when Al-tan rose and called after me. "Stop!" he shouted. +"Stop, stranger! The beast of Du-seen the Galu follows you." +</P> + +<P> +"The dog is not Du-seen's," I replied. "He belongs to my friend, as I +told you, and he prefers to stay with me until his master is found." +And I turned again to resume my way. I had taken but a few steps when +I heard a commotion behind me, and at the same moment a man leaned +close and whispered "Kazar!" close to my ear—kazar, the Caspakian +equivalent of beware. It was To-mar. As he spoke, he turned quickly +away as though loath to have others see that he knew me, and at the +same instant I wheeled to discover Du-seen striding rapidly after me. +Al-tan followed him, and it was evident that both were angry. +</P> + +<P> +Du-seen, a weapon half drawn, approached truculently. "The beast is +mine," he reiterated. "Would you steal him?" +</P> + +<P> +"He is not yours nor mine," I replied, "and I am not stealing him. If +he wishes to follow you, he may; I will not interfere; but if he wishes +to follow me, he shall; nor shall you prevent." I turned to Al-tan. +"Is not that fair?" I demanded. "Let the dog choose his master." +</P> + +<P> +Du-seen, without waiting for Al-tan's reply, reached for Nobs and +grasped him by the scruff of the neck. I did not interfere, for I +guessed what would happen; and it did. With a savage growl Nobs turned +like lightning upon the Galu, wrenched loose from his hold and leaped +for his throat. The man stepped back and warded off the first attack +with a heavy blow of his fist, immediately drawing his knife with which +to meet the Airedale's return. And Nobs would have returned, all +right, had not I spoken to him. In a low voice I called him to heel. +For just an instant he hesitated, standing there trembling and with +bared fangs, glaring at his foe; but he was well trained and had been +out with me quite as much as he had with Bowen—in fact, I had had most +to do with his early training; then he walked slowly and very +stiff-legged to his place behind me. +</P> + +<P> +Du-seen, red with rage, would have had it out with the two of us had +not Al-tan drawn him to one side and whispered in his ear—upon which, +with a grunt, the Galu walked straight back to the opposite end of the +hall, while Nobs and I continued upon our way toward the hut and Ajor. +As we passed out into the village plaza, I saw Chal-az—we were so +close to one another that I could have reached out and touched him—and +our eyes met; but though I greeted him pleasantly and paused to speak +to him, he brushed past me without a sign of recognition. I was +puzzled at his behavior, and then I recalled that To-mar, though he had +warned me, had appeared not to wish to seem friendly with me. I could +not understand their attitude, and was trying to puzzle out some sort +of explanation, when the matter was suddenly driven from my mind by the +report of a firearm. Instantly I broke into a run, my brain in a whirl +of forebodings, for the only firearms in the Kro-lu country were those +I had left in the hut with Ajor. +</P> + +<P> +That she was in danger I could not but fear, as she was now something +of an adept in the handling of both the pistol and rifle, a fact which +largely eliminated the chance that the shot had come from an +accidentally discharged firearm. When I left the hut, I had felt that +she and I were safe among friends; no thought of danger was in my mind; +but since my audience with Al-tan, the presence and bearing of Du-seen +and the strange attitude of both To-mar and Chal-az had each +contributed toward arousing my suspicions, and now I ran along the +narrow, winding alleys of the Kro-lu village with my heart fairly in my +mouth. +</P> + +<P> +I am endowed with an excellent sense of direction, which has been +greatly perfected by the years I have spent in the mountains and upon +the plains and deserts of my native state, so that it was with little +or no difficulty that I found my way back to the hut in which I had +left Ajor. As I entered the doorway, I called her name aloud. There +was no response. I drew a box of matches from my pocket and struck a +light and as the flame flared up, a half-dozen brawny warriors leaped +upon me from as many directions; but even in the brief instant that the +flare lasted, I saw that Ajor was not within the hut, and that my arms +and ammunition had been removed. +</P> + +<P> +As the six men leaped upon me, an angry growl burst from behind them. +I had forgotten Nobs. Like a demon of hate he sprang among those +Kro-lu fighting-men, tearing, rending, ripping with his long tusks and +his mighty jaws. They had me down in an instant, and it goes without +saying that the six of them could have kept me there had it not been +for Nobs; but while I was struggling to throw them off, Nobs was +springing first upon one and then upon another of them until they were +so put to it to preserve their hides and their lives from him that they +could give me only a small part of their attention. One of them was +assiduously attempting to strike me on the head with his stone hatchet; +but I caught his arm and at the same time turned over upon my belly, +after which it took but an instant to get my feet under me and rise +suddenly. +</P> + +<P> +As I did so, I kept a grip upon the man's arm, carrying it over one +shoulder. Then I leaned suddenly forward and hurled my antagonist over +my head to a hasty fall at the opposite side of the hut. In the dim +light of the interior I saw that Nobs had already accounted for one of +the others—one who lay very quiet upon the floor—while the four +remaining upon their feet were striking at him with knives and hatchets. +</P> + +<P> +Running to one side of the man I had just put out of the fighting, I +seized his hatchet and knife, and in another moment was in the thick of +the argument. I was no match for these savage warriors with their own +weapons and would soon have gone down to ignominious defeat and death +had it not been for Nobs, who alone was a match for the four of them. +I never saw any creature so quick upon its feet as was that great +Airedale, nor such frightful ferocity as he manifested in his attacks. +It was as much the latter as the former which contributed to the +undoing of our enemies, who, accustomed though they were to the +ferocity of terrible creatures, seemed awed by the sight of this +strange beast from another world battling at the side of his equally +strange master. Yet they were no cowards, and only by teamwork did +Nobs and I overcome them at last. We would rush for a man, +simultaneously, and as Nobs leaped for him upon one side, I would +strike at his head with the stone hatchet from the other. +</P> + +<P> +As the last man went down, I heard the running of many feet approaching +us from the direction of the plaza. To be captured now would mean +death; yet I could not attempt to leave the village without first +ascertaining the whereabouts of Ajor and releasing her if she were held +a captive. That I could escape the village I was not at all sure; but +of one thing I was positive; that it would do neither Ajor nor myself +any service to remain where I was and be captured; so with Nobs, bloody +but happy, following at heel, I turned down the first alley and slunk +away in the direction of the northern end of the village. +</P> + +<P> +Friendless and alone, hunted through the dark labyrinths of this savage +community, I seldom have felt more helpless than at that moment; yet +far transcending any fear which I may have felt for my own safety was +my concern for that of Ajor. What fate had befallen her? Where was +she, and in whose power? That I should live to learn the answers to +these queries I doubted; but that I should face death gladly in the +attempt—of that I was certain. And why? With all my concern for the +welfare of my friends who had accompanied me to Caprona, and of my best +friend of all, Bowen J. Tyler, Jr., I never yet had experienced the +almost paralyzing fear for the safety of any other creature which now +threw me alternately into a fever of despair and into a cold sweat of +apprehension as my mind dwelt upon the fate on one bit of half-savage +femininity of whose very existence even I had not dreamed a few short +weeks before. +</P> + +<P> +What was this hold she had upon me? Was I bewitched, that my mind +refused to function sanely, and that judgment and reason were dethroned +by some mad sentiment which I steadfastly refused to believe was love? +I had never been in love. I was not in love now—the very thought was +preposterous. How could I, Thomas Billings, the right-hand man of the +late Bowen J. Tyler, Sr., one of America's foremost captains of +industry and the greatest man in California, be in love with a—a—the +word stuck in my throat; yet by my own American standards Ajor could be +nothing else; at home, for all her beauty, for all her delicately +tinted skin, little Ajor by her apparel, by the habits and customs and +manners of her people, by her life, would have been classed a squaw. +Tom Billings in love with a squaw! I shuddered at the thought. +</P> + +<P> +And then there came to my mind, in a sudden, brilliant flash upon the +screen of recollection the picture of Ajor as I had last seen her, and +I lived again the delicious moment in which we had clung to one +another, lips smothering lips, as I left her to go to the council hall +of Al-tan; and I could have kicked myself for the snob and the cad that +my thoughts had proven me—me, who had always prided myself that I was +neither the one nor the other! +</P> + +<P> +These things ran through my mind as Nobs and I made our way through the +dark village, the voices and footsteps of those who sought us still in +our ears. These and many other things, nor could I escape the +incontrovertible fact that the little figure round which my +recollections and my hopes entwined themselves was that of +Ajor—beloved barbarian! My reveries were broken in upon by a hoarse +whisper from the black interior of a hut past which we were making our +way. My name was called in a low voice, and a man stepped out beside +me as I halted with raised knife. It was Chal-az. +</P> + +<P> +"Quick!" he warned. "In here! It is my hut, and they will not search +it." +</P> + +<P> +I hesitated, recalled his attitude of a few minutes before; and as +though he had read my thoughts, he said quickly: "I could not speak to +you in the plaza without danger of arousing suspicions which would +prevent me aiding you later, for word had gone out that Al-tan had +turned against you and would destroy you—this was after Du-seen the +Galu arrived." +</P> + +<P> +I followed him into the hut, and with Nobs at our heels we passed +through several chambers into a remote and windowless apartment where a +small lamp sputtered in its unequal battle with the inky darkness. A +hole in the roof permitted the smoke from burning oil egress; yet the +atmosphere was far from lucid. Here Chal-az motioned me to a seat upon +a furry hide spread upon the earthen floor. +</P> + +<P> +"I am your friend," he said. "You saved my life; and I am no ingrate +as is the batu Al-tan. I will serve you, and there are others here who +will serve you against Al-tan and this renegade Galu, Du-seen." +</P> + +<P> +"But where is Ajor?" I asked, for I cared little for my own safety +while she was in danger. +</P> + +<P> +"Ajor is safe, too," he answered. "We learned the designs of Al-tan +and Du-seen. The latter, learning that Ajor was here, demanded her; +and Al-tan promised that he should have her; but when the warriors went +to get her To-mar went with them. Ajor tried to defend herself. She +killed one of the warriors, and then To-mar picked her up in his arms +when the others had taken her weapons from her. He told the others to +look after the wounded man, who was really already dead, and to seize +you upon your return, and that he, To-mar, would bear Ajor to Al-tan; +but instead of bearing her to Al-tan, he took her to his own hut, where +she now is with So-al, To-mar's she. It all happened very quickly. +To-mar and I were in the council-hut when Du-seen attempted to take the +dog from you. I was seeking To-mar for this work. He ran out +immediately and accompanied the warriors to your hut while I remained +to watch what went on within the council-hut and to aid you if you +needed aid. What has happened since you know." +</P> + +<P> +I thanked him for his loyalty and then asked him to take me to Ajor; +but he said that it could not be done, as the village streets were +filled with searchers. In fact, we could hear them passing to and fro +among the huts, making inquiries, and at last Chal-az thought it best +to go to the doorway of his dwelling, which consisted of many huts +joined together, lest they enter and search. +</P> + +<P> +Chal-az was absent for a long time—several hours which seemed an +eternity to me. All sounds of pursuit had long since ceased, and I was +becoming uneasy because of his protracted absence when I heard him +returning through the other apartments of his dwelling. He was +perturbed when he entered that in which I awaited him, and I saw a +worried expression upon his face. +</P> + +<P> +"What is wrong?" I asked. "Have they found Ajor?" +</P> + +<P> +"No," he replied; "but Ajor has gone. She learned that you had escaped +them and was told that you had left the village, believing that she had +escaped too. So-al could not detain her. She made her way out over +the top of the palisade, armed with only her knife." +</P> + +<P> +"Then I must go," I said, rising. Nobs rose and shook himself. He had +been dead asleep when I spoke. +</P> + +<P> +"Yes," agreed Chal-az, "you must go at once. It is almost dawn. +Du-seen leaves at daylight to search for her." He leaned close to my +ear and whispered: "There are many to follow and help you. Al-tan has +agreed to aid Du-seen against the Galus of Jor; but there are many of +us who have combined to rise against Al-tan and prevent this ruthless +desecration of the laws and customs of the Kro-lu and of Caspak. We +will rise as Luata has ordained that we shall rise, and only thus. No +batu may win to the estate of a Galu by treachery and force of arms +while Chal-az lives and may wield a heavy blow and a sharp spear with +true Kro-lus at his back!" +</P> + +<P> +"I hope that I may live to aid you," I replied. "If I had my weapons +and my ammunition, I could do much. Do you know where they are?" "No," +he said, "they have disappeared." And then: "Wait! You cannot go +forth half armed, and garbed as you are. You are going into the Galu +country, and you must go as a Galu. Come!" And without waiting for a +reply, he led me into another apartment, or to be more explicit, +another of the several huts which formed his cellular dwelling. +</P> + +<P> +Here was a pile of skins, weapons, and ornaments. "Remove your strange +apparel," said Chal-az, "and I will fit you out as a true Galu. I have +slain several of them in the raids of my early days as a Kro-lu, and +here are their trappings." +</P> + +<P> +I saw the wisdom of his suggestion, and as my clothes were by now so +ragged as to but half conceal my nakedness, I had no regrets in laying +them aside. Stripped to the skin, I donned the red-deerskin tunic, the +leopard-tail, the golden fillet, armlets and leg-ornaments of a Galu, +with the belt, scabbard and knife, the shield, spear, bow and arrow and +the long rope which I learned now for the first time is the distinctive +weapon of the Galu warrior. It is a rawhide rope, not dissimilar to +those of the Western plains and cow-camps of my youth. The honda is a +golden oval and accurate weight for the throwing of the noose. This +heavy honda, Chal-az explained, is used as a weapon, being thrown with +great force and accuracy at an enemy and then coiled in for another +cast. In hunting and in battle, they use both the noose and the honda. +If several warriors surround a single foeman or quarry, they rope it +with the noose from several sides; but a single warrior against a lone +antagonist will attempt to brain his foe with the metal oval. +</P> + +<P> +I could not have been more pleased with any weapon, short of a rifle, +which he could have found for me, since I have been adept with the rope +from early childhood; but I must confess that I was less favorably +inclined toward my apparel. In so far as the sensation was concerned, +I might as well have been entirely naked, so short and light was the +tunic. When I asked Chal-az for the Caspakian name for rope, he told +me ga, and for the first time I understood the derivation of the word +Galu, which means ropeman. +</P> + +<P> +Entirely outfitted I would not have known myself, so strange was my +garb and my armament. Upon my back were slung my bow, arrows, shield, +and short spear; from the center of my girdle depended my knife; at my +right hip was my stone hatchet; and at my left hung the coils of my +long rope. By reaching my right hand over my left shoulder, I could +seize the spear or arrows; my left hand could find my bow over my right +shoulder, while a veritable contortionist-act was necessary to place my +shield in front of me and upon my left arm. The shield, long and oval, +is utilized more as back-armor than as a defense against frontal +attack, for the close-set armlets of gold upon the left forearm are +principally depended upon to ward off knife, spear, hatchet, or arrow +from in front; but against the greater carnivora and the attacks of +several human antagonists, the shield is utilized to its best advantage +and carried by loops upon the left arm. +</P> + +<P> +Fully equipped, except for a blanket, I followed Chal-az from his +domicile into the dark and deserted alleys of Kro-lu. Silently we +crept along, Nobs silent at heel, toward the nearest portion of the +palisade. Here Chal-az bade me farewell, telling me that he hoped to +see me soon among the Galus, as he felt that "the call soon would come" +to him. I thanked him for his loyal assistance and promised that +whether I reached the Galu country or not, I should always stand ready +to repay his kindness to me, and that he could count on me in the +revolution against Al-tan. +</P> + +<BR><BR><BR> + +<A NAME="chap07"></A> +<H3 ALIGN="center"> +Chapter 7 +</H3> + +<P> +To run up the inclined surface of the palisade and drop to the ground +outside was the work of but a moment, or would have been but for Nobs. +I had to put my rope about him after we reached the top, lift him over +the sharpened stakes and lower him upon the outside. To find Ajor in +the unknown country to the north seemed rather hopeless; yet I could do +no less than try, praying in the meanwhile that she would come through +unscathed and in safety to her father. +</P> + +<P> +As Nobs and I swung along in the growing light of the coming day, I was +impressed by the lessening numbers of savage beasts the farther north I +traveled. With the decrease among the carnivora, the herbivora +increased in quantity, though anywhere in Caspak they are sufficiently +plentiful to furnish ample food for the meateaters of each locality. +The wild cattle, antelope, deer, and horses I passed showed changes in +evolution from their cousins farther south. The kine were smaller and +less shaggy, the horses larger. North of the Kro-lu village I saw a +small band of the latter of about the size of those of our old Western +plains—such as the Indians bred in former days and to a lesser extent +even now. They were fat and sleek, and I looked upon them with +covetous eyes and with thoughts that any old cow-puncher may well +imagine I might entertain after having hoofed it for weeks; but they +were wary, scarce permitting me to approach within bow-and-arrow range, +much less within roping-distance; yet I still had hopes which I never +discarded. +</P> + +<P> +Twice before noon we were stalked and charged by man-eaters; but even +though I was without firearms, I still had ample protection in Nobs, +who evidently had learned something of Caspakian hunt rules under the +tutelage of Du-seen or some other Galu, and of course a great deal more +by experience. He always was on the alert for dangerous foes, +invariably warning me by low growls of the approach of a large +carnivorous animal long before I could either see or hear it, and then +when the thing appeared, he would run snapping at its heels, drawing +the charge away from me until I found safety in some tree; yet never +did the wily Nobs take an unnecessary chance of a mauling. He would +dart in and away so quickly that not even the lightning-like movements +of the great cats could reach him. I have seen him tantalize them thus +until they fairly screamed in rage. +</P> + +<P> +The greatest inconvenience the hunters caused me was the delay, for +they have a nasty habit of keeping one treed for an hour or more if +balked in their designs; but at last we came in sight of a line of +cliffs running east and west across our path as far as the eye could +see in either direction, and I knew that we reached the natural +boundary which marks the line between the Kro-lu and Galu countries. +The southern face of these cliffs loomed high and forbidding, rising to +an altitude of some two hundred feet, sheer and precipitous, without a +break that the eye could perceive. How I was to find a crossing I +could not guess. Whether to search to the east toward the still +loftier barrier-cliffs fronting upon the ocean, or westward in the +direction of the inland sea was a question which baffled me. Were +there many passes or only one? I had no way of knowing. I could but +trust to chance. It never occurred to me that Nobs had made the +crossing at least once, possibly a greater number of times, and that he +might lead me to the pass; and so it was with no idea of assistance +that I appealed to him as a man alone with a dumb brute so often does. +</P> + +<P> +"Nobs," I said, "how the devil are we going to cross those cliffs?" +</P> + +<P> +I do not say that he understood me, even though I realize that an +Airedale is a mighty intelligent dog; but I do swear that he seemed to +understand me, for he wheeled about, barking joyously and trotted off +toward the west; and when I didn't follow him, he ran back to me +barking furiously, and at last taking hold of the calf of my leg in an +effort to pull me along in the direction he wished me to go. Now, as +my legs were naked and Nobs' jaws are much more powerful than he +realizes, I gave in and followed him, for I knew that I might as well +go west as east, as far as any knowledge I had of the correct direction +went. +</P> + +<P> +We followed the base of the cliffs for a considerable distance. The +ground was rolling and tree-dotted and covered with grazing animals, +alone, in pairs and in herds—a motley aggregation of the modern and +extinct herbivora of the world. A huge woolly mastodon stood swaying +to and fro in the shade of a giant fern—a mighty bull with enormous +upcurving tusks. Near him grazed an aurochs bull with a cow and a +calf, close beside a lone rhinoceros asleep in a dust-hole. Deer, +antelope, bison, horses, sheep, and goats were all in sight at the same +time, and at a little distance a great megatherium reared up on its +huge tail and massive hind feet to tear the leaves from a tall tree. +The forgotten past rubbed flanks with the present—while Tom Billings, +modern of the moderns, passed in the garb of pre-Glacial man, and +before him trotted a creature of a breed scarce sixty years old. Nobs +was a parvenu; but it failed to worry him. +</P> + +<P> +As we neared the inland sea we saw more flying reptiles and several +great amphibians, but none of them attacked us. As we were topping a +rise in the middle of the afternoon, I saw something that brought me to +a sudden stop. Calling Nobs in a whisper, I cautioned him to silence +and kept him at heel while I threw myself flat and watched, from behind +a sheltering shrub, a body of warriors approaching the cliff from the +south. I could see that they were Galus, and I guessed that Du-seen +led them. They had taken a shorter route to the pass and so had +overhauled me. I could see them plainly, for they were no great +distance away, and saw with relief that Ajor was not with them. +</P> + +<P> +The cliffs before them were broken and ragged, those coming from the +east overlapping the cliffs from the west. Into the defile formed by +this overlapping the party filed. I could see them climbing upward for +a few minutes, and then they disappeared from view. When the last of +them had passed from sight, I rose and bent my steps in the direction +of the pass—the same pass toward which Nobs had evidently been leading +me. I went warily as I approached it, for fear the party might have +halted to rest. If they hadn't halted, I had no fear of being +discovered, for I had seen that the Galus marched without point, +flankers or rear guard; and when I reached the pass and saw a narrow, +one-man trail leading upward at a stiff angle, I wished that I were +chief of the Galus for a few weeks. A dozen men could hold off forever +in that narrow pass all the hordes which might be brought up from the +south; yet there it lay entirely unguarded. +</P> + +<P> +The Galus might be a great people in Caspak; but they were pitifully +inefficient in even the simpler forms of military tactics. I was +surprised that even a man of the Stone Age should be so lacking in +military perspicacity. Du-seen dropped far below par in my estimation +as I saw the slovenly formation of his troop as it passed through an +enemy country and entered the domain of the chief against whom he had +risen in revolt; but Du-seen must have known Jor the chief and known +that Jor would not be waiting for him at the pass. Nevertheless he +took unwarranted chances. With one squad of a home-guard company I +could have conquered Caspak. +</P> + +<P> +Nobs and I followed to the summit of the pass, and there we saw the +party defiling into the Galu country, the level of which was not, on an +average, over fifty feet below the summit of the cliffs and about a +hundred and fifty feet above the adjacent Kro-lu domain. Immediately +the landscape changed. The trees, the flowers and the shrubs were of a +hardier type, and I realized that at night the Galu blanket might be +almost a necessity. Acacia and eucalyptus predominated among the +trees; yet there were ash and oak and even pine and fir and hemlock. +The tree-life was riotous. The forests were dense and peopled by +enormous trees. From the summit of the cliff I could see forests +rising hundreds of feet above the level upon which I stood, and even at +the distance they were from me I realized that the boles were of +gigantic size. +</P> + +<P> +At last I had come to the Galu country. Though not conceived in +Caspak, I had indeed come up cor-sva-jo—from the beginning I had come +up through the hideous horrors of the lower Caspakian spheres of +evolution, and I could not but feel something of the elation and pride +which had filled To-mar and So-al when they realized that the call had +come to them and they were about to rise from the estate of Band-lus to +that of Kro-lus. I was glad that I was not batu. +</P> + +<P> +But where was Ajor? Though my eyes searched the wide landscape before +me, I saw nothing other than the warriors of Du-seen and the beasts of +the fields and the forests. Surrounded by forests, I could see wide +plains dotting the country as far as the eye could reach; but nowhere +was a sign of a small Galu she—the beloved she whom I would have given +my right hand to see. +</P> + +<P> +Nobs and I were hungry; we had not eaten since the preceding night, and +below us was game—deer, sheep, anything that a hungry hunter might +crave; so down the steep trail we made our way, and then upon my belly +with Nobs crouching low behind me, I crawled toward a small herd of red +deer feeding at the edge of a plain close beside a forest. There was +ample cover, what with solitary trees and dotting bushes so that I +found no difficulty in stalking up wind to within fifty feet of my +quarry—a large, sleek doe unaccompanied by a fawn. Greatly then did I +regret my rifle. Never in my life had I shot an arrow, but I knew how +it was done, and fitting the shaft to my string, I aimed carefully and +let drive. At the same instant I called to Nobs and leaped to my feet. +</P> + +<P> +The arrow caught the doe full in the side, and in the same moment Nobs +was after her. She turned to flee with the two of us pursuing her, +Nobs with his great fangs bared and I with my short spear poised for a +cast. The balance of the herd sprang quickly away; but the hurt doe +lagged, and in a moment Nobs was beside her and had leaped at her +throat. He had her down when I came up, and I finished her with my +spear. It didn't take me long to have a fire going and a steak +broiling, and while I was preparing for my own feast, Nobs was filling +himself with raw venison. Never have I enjoyed a meal so heartily. +</P> + +<P> +For two days I searched fruitlessly back and forth from the inland sea +almost to the barrier cliffs for some trace of Ajor, and always I +trended northward; but I saw no sign of any human being, not even the +band of Galu warriors under Du-seen; and then I commenced to have +misgivings. Had Chal-az spoken the truth to me when he said that Ajor +had quit the village of the Kro-lu? Might he not have been acting upon +the orders of Al-tan, in whose savage bosom might have lurked some +small spark of shame that he had attempted to do to death one who had +befriended a Kro-lu warrior—a guest who had brought no harm upon the +Kro-lu race—and thus have sent me out upon a fruitless mission in the +hope that the wild beasts would do what Al-tan hesitated to do? I did +not know; but the more I thought upon it, the more convinced I became +that Ajor had not quitted the Kro-lu village; but if not, what had +brought Du-seen forth without her? There was a puzzler, and once again +I was all at sea. +</P> + +<P> +On the second day of my experience of the Galu country I came upon a +bunch of as magnificent horses as it has ever been my lot to see. They +were dark bays with blazed faces and perfect surcingles of white about +their barrels. Their forelegs were white to the knees. In height they +stood almost sixteen hands, the mares being a trifle smaller than the +stallions, of which there were three or four in this band of a hundred, +which comprised many colts and half-grown horses. Their markings were +almost identical, indicating a purity of strain that might have +persisted since long ages ago. If I had coveted one of the little +ponies of the Kro-lu country, imagine my state of mind when I came upon +these magnificent creatures! No sooner had I espied them than I +determined to possess one of them; nor did it take me long to select a +beautiful young stallion—a four-year-old, I guessed him. +</P> + +<P> +The horses were grazing close to the edge of the forest in which Nobs +and I were concealed, while the ground between us and them was dotted +with clumps of flowering brush which offered perfect concealment. The +stallion of my choice grazed with a filly and two yearlings a little +apart from the balance of the herd and nearest to the forest and to me. +At my whispered "Charge!" Nobs flattened himself to the ground, and I +knew that he would not again move until I called him, unless danger +threatened me from the rear. Carefully I crept forward toward my +unsuspecting quarry, coming undetected to the concealment of a bush not +more than twenty feet from him. Here I quietly arranged my noose, +spreading it flat and open upon the ground. +</P> + +<P> +To step to one side of the bush and throw directly from the ground, +which is the style I am best in, would take but an instant, and in that +instant the stallion would doubtless be under way at top speed in the +opposite direction. Then he would have to wheel about when I surprised +him, and in doing so, he would most certainly rise slightly upon his +hind feet and throw up his head, presenting a perfect target for my +noose as he pivoted. +</P> + +<P> +Yes, I had it beautifully worked out, and I waited until he should turn +in my direction. At last it became evident that he was doing so, when +apparently without cause, the filly raised her head, neighed and +started off at a trot in the opposite direction, immediately followed, +of course, by the colts and my stallion. It looked for a moment as +though my last hope was blasted; but presently their fright, if fright +it was, passed, and they resumed grazing again a hundred yards farther +on. This time there was no bush within fifty feet of them, and I was +at a loss as to how to get within safe roping-distance. Anywhere under +forty feet I am an excellent roper, at fifty feet I am fair; but over +that I knew it would be a matter of luck if I succeeded in getting my +noose about that beautiful arched neck. +</P> + +<P> +As I stood debating the question in my mind, I was almost upon the +point of making the attempt at the long throw. I had plenty of rope, +this Galu weapon being fully sixty feet long. How I wished for the +collies from the ranch! At a word they would have circled this little +bunch and driven it straight down to me; and then it flashed into my +mind that Nobs had run with those collies all one summer, that he had +gone down to the pasture with them after the cows every evening and +done his part in driving them back to the milking-barn, and had done it +intelligently; but Nobs had never done the thing alone, and it had been +a year since he had done it at all. However, the chances were more in +favor of my foozling the long throw than that Nobs would fall down in +his part if I gave him the chance. +</P> + +<P> +Having come to a decision, I had to creep back to Nobs and get him, and +then with him at my heels return to a large bush near the four horses. +Here we could see directly through the bush, and pointing the animals +out to Nobs I whispered: "Fetch 'em, boy!" +</P> + +<P> +In an instant he was gone, circling wide toward the rear of the quarry. +They caught sight of him almost immediately and broke into a trot away +from him; but when they saw that he was apparently giving them a wide +berth they stopped again, though they stood watching him, with +high-held heads and quivering nostrils. It was a beautiful sight. And +then Nobs turned in behind them and trotted slowly back toward me. He +did not bark, nor come rushing down upon them, and when he had come +closer to them, he proceeded at a walk. The splendid creatures seemed +more curious than fearful, making no effort to escape until Nobs was +quite close to them; then they trotted slowly away, but at right angles. +</P> + +<P> +And now the fun and trouble commenced. Nobs, of course, attempted to +turn them, and he seemed to have selected the stallion to work upon, +for he paid no attention to the others, having intelligence enough to +know that a lone dog could run his legs off before he could round up +four horses that didn't wish to be rounded up. The stallion, however, +had notions of his own about being headed, and the result was as pretty +a race as one would care to see. Gad, how that horse could run! He +seemed to flatten out and shoot through the air with the very minimum +of exertion, and at his forefoot ran Nobs, doing his best to turn him. +He was barking now, and twice he leaped high against the stallion's +flank; but this cost too much effort and always lost him ground, as +each time he was hurled heels over head by the impact; yet before they +disappeared over a rise in the ground I was sure that Nobs' persistence +was bearing fruit; it seemed to me that the horse was giving way a +trifle to the right. Nobs was between him and the main herd, to which +the yearling and filly had already fled. +</P> + +<P> +As I stood waiting for Nobs' return, I could not but speculate upon my +chances should I be attacked by some formidable beast. I was some +distance from the forest and armed with weapons in the use of which I +was quite untrained, though I had practiced some with the spear since +leaving the Kro-lu country. I must admit that my thoughts were not +pleasant ones, verging almost upon cowardice, until I chanced to think +of little Ajor alone in this same land and armed only with a knife! I +was immediately filled with shame; but in thinking the matter over +since, I have come to the conclusion that my state of mind was +influenced largely by my approximate nakedness. If you have never +wandered about in broad daylight garbed in a bit of red-deer skin in +inadequate length, you can have no conception of the sensation of +futility that overwhelms one. Clothes, to a man accustomed to wearing +clothes, impart a certain self-confidence; lack of them induces panic. +</P> + +<P> +But no beast attacked me, though I saw several menacing forms passing +through the dark aisles of the forest. At last I commenced to worry +over Nobs' protracted absence and to fear that something had befallen +him. I was coiling my rope to start out in search of him, when I saw +the stallion leap into view at almost the same spot behind which he had +disappeared, and at his heels ran Nobs. Neither was running so fast or +furiously as when last I had seen them. +</P> + +<P> +The horse, as he approached me, I could see was laboring hard; yet he +kept gamely to his task, and Nobs, too. The splendid fellow was +driving the quarry straight toward me. I crouched behind my bush and +laid my noose in readiness to throw. As the two approached my +hiding-place, Nobs reduced his speed, and the stallion, evidently only +too glad of the respite, dropped into a trot. It was at this gait that +he passed me; my rope-hand flew forward; the honda, well down, held the +noose open, and the beautiful bay fairly ran his head into it. +</P> + +<P> +Instantly he wheeled to dash off at right angles. I braced myself with +the rope around my hip and brought him to a sudden stand. Rearing and +struggling, he fought for his liberty while Nobs, panting and with +lolling tongue, came and threw himself down near me. He seemed to know +that his work was done and that he had earned his rest. The stallion +was pretty well spent, and after a few minutes of struggling he stood +with feet far spread, nostrils dilated and eyes wide, watching me as I +edged toward him, taking in the slack of the rope as I advanced. A +dozen times he reared and tried to break away; but always I spoke +soothingly to him and after an hour of effort I succeeded in reaching +his head and stroking his muzzle. Then I gathered a handful of grass +and offered it to him, and always I talked to him in a quiet and +reassuring voice. +</P> + +<P> +I had expected a battle royal; but on the contrary I found his taming a +matter of comparative ease. Though wild, he was gentle to a degree, +and of such remarkable intelligence that he soon discovered that I had +no intention of harming him. After that, all was easy. Before that +day was done, I had taught him to lead and to stand while I stroked his +head and flanks, and to eat from my hand, and had the satisfaction of +seeing the light of fear die in his large, intelligent eyes. +</P> + +<P> +The following day I fashioned a hackamore from a piece which I cut from +the end of my long Galu rope, and then I mounted him fully prepared for +a struggle of titanic proportions in which I was none too sure that he +would not come off victor; but he never made the slightest effort to +unseat me, and from then on his education was rapid. No horse ever +learned more quickly the meaning of the rein and the pressure of the +knees. I think he soon learned to love me, and I know that I loved +him; while he and Nobs were the best of pals. I called him Ace. I had +a friend who was once in the French flying-corps, and when Ace let +himself out, he certainly flew. +</P> + +<P> +I cannot explain to you, nor can you understand, unless you too are a +horseman, the exhilarating feeling of well-being which pervaded me from +the moment that I commenced riding Ace. I was a new man, imbued with a +sense of superiority that led me to feel that I could go forth and +conquer all Caspak single-handed. Now, when I needed meat, I ran it +down on Ace and roped it, and when some great beast with which we could +not cope threatened us, we galloped away to safety; but for the most +part the creatures we met looked upon us in terror, for Ace and I in +combination presented a new and unusual beast beyond their experience +and ken. +</P> + +<P> +For five days I rode back and forth across the southern end of the Galu +country without seeing a human being; yet all the time I was working +slowly toward the north, for I had determined to comb the territory +thoroughly in search of Ajor; but on the fifth day as I emerged from a +forest, I saw some distance ahead of me a single small figure pursued +by many others. Instantly I recognized the quarry as Ajor. The entire +party was fully a mile away from me, and they were crossing my path at +right angles, Ajor a few hundred yards in advance of those who +followed her. One of her pursuers was far in advance of the others, +and was gaining upon her rapidly. With a word and a pressure of the +knees I sent Ace leaping out into the open, and with Nobs running close +alongside, we raced toward her. +</P> + +<P> +At first none of them saw us; but as we neared Ajor, the pack behind +the foremost pursuer discovered us and set up such a howl as I never +before have heard. They were all Galus, and I soon recognized the +foremost as Du-seen. He was almost upon Ajor now, and with a sense of +terror such as I had never before experienced, I saw that he ran with +his knife in his hand, and that his intention was to slay rather than +capture. I could not understand it, but I could only urge Ace to +greater speed, and most nobly did the wondrous creature respond to my +demands. If ever a four-footed creature approximated flying, it was +Ace that day. +</P> + +<P> +Du-seen, intent upon his brutal design, had as yet not noticed us. He +was within a pace of Ajor when Ace and I dashed between them, and I, +leaning down to the left, swept my little barbarian into the hollow of +an arm and up on the withers of my glorious Ace. We had snatched her +from the very clutches of Du-seen, who halted, mystified and raging. +Ajor, too, was mystified, as we had come up from diagonally behind her +so that she had no idea that we were near until she was swung to Ace's +back. The little savage turned with drawn knife to stab me, thinking +that I was some new enemy, when her eyes found my face and she +recognized me. With a little sob she threw her arms about my neck, +gasping: "My Tom! My Tom!" +</P> + +<P> +And then Ace sank suddenly into thick mud to his belly, and Ajor and I +were thrown far over his head. He had run into one of those numerous +springs which cover Caspak. Sometimes they are little lakes, again but +tiny pools, and often mere quagmires of mud, as was this one overgrown +with lush grasses which effectually hid its treacherous identity. It +is a wonder that Ace did not break a leg, so fast he was going when he +fell; but he didn't, though with four good legs he was unable to wallow +from the mire. Ajor and I had sprawled face down in the covering +grasses and so had not sunk deeply; but when we tried to rise, we found +that there was not footing, and presently we saw that Du-seen and his +followers were coming down upon us. There was no escape. It was +evident that we were doomed. +</P> + +<P> +"Slay me!" begged Ajor. "Let me die at thy loved hands rather than +beneath the knife of this hateful thing, for he will kill me. He has +sworn to kill me. Last night he captured me, and when later he would +have his way with me, I struck him with my fists and with my knife I +stabbed him, and then I escaped, leaving him raging in pain and +thwarted desire. Today they searched for me and found me; and as I +fled, Du-seen ran after me crying that he would slay me. Kill me, my +Tom, and then fall upon thine own spear, for they will kill you +horribly if they take you alive." +</P> + +<P> +I couldn't kill her—not at least until the last moment; and I told her +so, and that I loved her, and that until death came, I would live and +fight for her. +</P> + +<P> +Nobs had followed us into the bog and had done fairly well at first, +but when he neared us he too sank to his belly and could only flounder +about. We were in this predicament when Du-seen and his followers +approached the edge of the horrible swamp. I saw that Al-tan was with +him and many other Kro-lu warriors. The alliance against Jor the chief +had, therefore, been consummated, and this horde was already marching +upon the Galu city. I sighed as I thought how close I had been to +saving not only Ajor but her father and his people from defeat and +death. +</P> + +<P> +Beyond the swamp was a dense wood. Could we have reached this, we +would have been safe; but it might as well have been a hundred miles +away as a hundred yards across that hidden lake of sticky mud. Upon +the edge of the swamp Du-seen and his horde halted to revile us. They +could not reach us with their hands; but at a command from Du-seen they +fitted arrows to their bows, and I saw that the end had come. Ajor +huddled close to me, and I took her in my arms. "I love you, Tom," she +said, "only you." Tears came to my eyes then, not tears of self-pity +for my predicament, but tears from a heart filled with a great love—a +heart that sees the sun of its life and its love setting even as it +rises. +</P> + +<P> +The renegade Galus and their Kro-lu allies stood waiting for the word +from Du-seen that would launch that barbed avalanche of death upon us, +when there broke from the wood beyond the swamp the sweetest music that +ever fell upon the ears of man—the sharp staccato of at least two +score rifles fired rapidly at will. Down went the Galu and Kro-lu +warriors like tenpins before that deadly fusillade. +</P> + +<P> +What could it mean? To me it meant but one thing, and that was that +Hollis and Short and the others had scaled the cliffs and made their +way north to the Galu country upon the opposite side of the island in +time to save Ajor and me from almost certain death. I didn't have to +have an introduction to them to know that the men who held those rifles +were the men of my own party; and when, a few minutes later, they came +forth from their concealment, my eyes verified my hopes. There they +were, every man-jack of them; and with them were a thousand straight, +sleek warriors of the Galu race; and ahead of the others came two men +in the garb of Galus. Each was tall and straight and wonderfully +muscled; yet they differed as Ace might differ from a perfect specimen +of another species. As they approached the mire, Ajor held forth her +arms and cried, "Jor, my chief! My father!" and the elder of the two +rushed in knee-deep to rescue her, and then the other came close and +looked into my face, and his eyes went wide, and mine too, and I cried: +"Bowen! For heaven's sake, Bowen Tyler!" +</P> + +<P> +It was he. My search was ended. Around me were all my company and the +man we had searched a new world to find. They cut saplings from the +forest and laid a road into the swamp before they could get us all out, +and then we marched back to the city of Jor the Galu chief, and there +was great rejoicing when Ajor came home again mounted upon the glossy +back of the stallion Ace. +</P> + +<P> +Tyler and Hollis and Short and all the rest of us Americans nearly +worked our jaws loose on the march back to the village, and for days +afterward we kept it up. They told me how they had crossed the barrier +cliffs in five days, working twenty-four hours a day in three +eight-hour shifts with two reliefs to each shift alternating +half-hourly. Two men with electric drills driven from the dynamos +aboard the <i>Toreador</i> drilled two holes four feet apart in the face of +the cliff and in the same horizontal planes. The holes slanted +slightly downward. Into these holes the iron rods brought as a part of +our equipment and for just this purpose were inserted, extending about +a foot beyond the face of the rock, across these two rods a plank was +laid, and then the next shift, mounting to the new level, bored two +more holes five feet above the new platform, and so on. +</P> + +<P> +During the nights the searchlights from the <i>Toreador</i> were kept playing +upon the cliff at the point where the drills were working, and at the +rate of ten feet an hour the summit was reached upon the fifth day. +Ropes were lowered, blocks lashed to trees at the top, and crude +elevators rigged, so that by the night of the fifth day the entire +party, with the exception of the few men needed to man the <i>Toreador</i>, +were within Caspak with an abundance of arms, ammunition and equipment. +</P> + +<P> +From then on, they fought their way north in search of me, after a vain +and perilous effort to enter the hideous reptile-infested country to +the south. Owing to the number of guns among them, they had not lost a +man; but their path was strewn with the dead creatures they had been +forced to slay to win their way to the north end of the island, where +they had found Bowen and his bride among the Galus of Jor. +</P> + +<P> +The reunion between Bowen and Nobs was marked by a frantic display upon +Nobs' part, which almost stripped Bowen of the scanty attire that the +Galu custom had vouchsafed him. When we arrived at the Galu city, Lys +La Rue was waiting to welcome us. She was Mrs. Tyler now, as the +master of the <i>Toreador</i> had married them the very day that the +search-party had found them, though neither Lys nor Bowen would admit +that any civil or religious ceremony could have rendered more sacred +the bonds with which God had united them. +</P> + +<P> +Neither Bowen nor the party from the <i>Toreador</i> had seen any sign of +Bradley and his party. They had been so long lost now that any hopes +for them must be definitely abandoned. The Galus had heard rumors of +them, as had the Western Kro-lu and Band-lu; but none had seen aught of +them since they had left Fort Dinosaur months since. +</P> + +<P> +We rested in Jor's village for a fortnight while we prepared for the +southward journey to the point where the <i>Toreador</i> was to lie off shore +in wait for us. During these two weeks Chal-az came up from the Kro-lu +country, now a full-fledged Galu. He told us that the remnants of +Al-tan's party had been slain when they attempted to re-enter Kro-lu. +Chal-az had been made chief, and when he rose, had left the tribe under +a new leader whom all respected. +</P> + +<P> +Nobs stuck close to Bowen; but Ace and Ajor and I went out upon many +long rides through the beautiful north Galu country. Chal-az had +brought my arms and ammunition up from Kro-lu with him; but my clothes +were gone; nor did I miss them once I became accustomed to the free +attire of the Galu. +</P> + +<P> +At last came the time for our departure; upon the following morning we +were to set out toward the south and the <i>Toreador</i> and dear old +California. I had asked Ajor to go with us; but Jor her father had +refused to listen to the suggestion. No pleas could swerve him from +his decision: Ajor, the <i>cos-ata-lo</i>, from whom might spring a new and +greater Caspakian race, could not be spared. I might have any other +she among the Galus; but Ajor—no! +</P> + +<P> +The poor child was heartbroken; and as for me, I was slowly realizing +the hold that Ajor had upon my heart and wondered how I should get +along without her. As I held her in my arms that last night, I tried +to imagine what life would be like without her, for at last there had +come to me the realization that I loved her—loved my little barbarian; +and as I finally tore myself away and went to my own hut to snatch a +few hours' sleep before we set off upon our long journey on the morrow, +I consoled myself with the thought that time would heal the wound and +that back in my native land I should find a mate who would be all and +more to me than little Ajor could ever be—a woman of my own race and +my own culture. +</P> + +<P> +Morning came more quickly than I could have wished. I rose and +breakfasted, but saw nothing of Ajor. It was best, I thought, that I +go thus without the harrowing pangs of a last farewell. The party +formed for the march, an escort of Galu warriors ready to accompany us. +I could not even bear to go to Ace's corral and bid him farewell. The +night before, I had given him to Ajor, and now in my mind the two +seemed inseparable. +</P> + +<P> +And so we marched away, down the street flanked with its stone houses +and out through the wide gateway in the stone wall which surrounds the +city and on across the clearing toward the forest through which we must +pass to reach the northern boundary of Galu, beyond which we would turn +south. At the edge of the forest I cast a backward glance at the city +which held my heart, and beside the massive gateway I saw that which +brought me to a sudden halt. It was a little figure leaning against +one of the great upright posts upon which the gates swing—a crumpled +little figure; and even at this distance I could see its shoulders +heave to the sobs that racked it. It was the last straw. +</P> + +<P> +Bowen was near me. "Good-bye old man," I said. "I'm going back." +</P> + +<P> +He looked at me in surprise. "Good-bye, old man," he said, and grasped +my hand. "I thought you'd do it in the end." +</P> + +<P> +And then I went back and took Ajor in my arms and kissed the tears from +her eyes and a smile to her lips while together we watched the last of +the Americans disappear into the forest. +</P> + +<BR><BR><BR> + +<PRE> +[Transcriber's note: I have made the following changes to the text: + + PAGE LINE ORIGINAL CHANGED TO + + 75 15 later latter + 108 14 in is + 123 24 the he + 131 13 plans planes< + 131 28 new few + 132 24 Donosaur Dinosaur] +</PRE> + +<BR><BR><BR><BR> + + + + + + + + +<pre> + + + + + +End of the Project Gutenberg EBook of The People that Time Forgot, by +Edgar Rice Burroughs + +*** END OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE PEOPLE THAT TIME FORGOT *** + +***** This file should be named 552-h.htm or 552-h.zip ***** +This and all associated files of various formats will be found in: + https://www.gutenberg.org/5/5/552/ + +Produced by Judith Boss. 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You may copy it, give it away or +re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included +with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org + + +Title: The People that Time Forgot + +Author: Edgar Rice Burroughs + +Posting Date: July 30, 2008 [EBook #552] +Release Date: June, 1996 +[Last updated: February 2, 2014] + +Language: English + +Character set encoding: ASCII + +*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE PEOPLE THAT TIME FORGOT *** + + + + +Produced by Judith Boss. HTML version by Al Haines. + + + + + + + + + +The People That Time Forgot + + +By + +Edgar Rice Burroughs + + + + +Chapter 1 + +I am forced to admit that even though I had traveled a long distance to +place Bowen Tyler's manuscript in the hands of his father, I was still +a trifle skeptical as to its sincerity, since I could not but recall +that it had not been many years since Bowen had been one of the most +notorious practical jokers of his alma mater. The truth was that as I +sat in the Tyler library at Santa Monica I commenced to feel a trifle +foolish and to wish that I had merely forwarded the manuscript by +express instead of bearing it personally, for I confess that I do not +enjoy being laughed at. I have a well-developed sense of humor--when +the joke is not on me. + +Mr. Tyler, Sr., was expected almost hourly. The last steamer in from +Honolulu had brought information of the date of the expected sailing of +his yacht _Toreador_, which was now twenty-four hours overdue. Mr. +Tyler's assistant secretary, who had been left at home, assured me that +there was no doubt but that the _Toreador_ had sailed as promised, since +he knew his employer well enough to be positive that nothing short of +an act of God would prevent his doing what he had planned to do. I was +also aware of the fact that the sending apparatus of the _Toreador_'s +wireless equipment was sealed, and that it would only be used in event +of dire necessity. There was, therefore, nothing to do but wait, and +we waited. + +We discussed the manuscript and hazarded guesses concerning it and the +strange events it narrated. The torpedoing of the liner upon which +Bowen J. Tyler, Jr., had taken passage for France to join the American +Ambulance was a well-known fact, and I had further substantiated by +wire to the New York office of the owners, that a Miss La Rue had been +booked for passage. Further, neither she nor Bowen had been mentioned +among the list of survivors; nor had the body of either of them been +recovered. + +Their rescue by the English tug was entirely probable; the capture of +the enemy _U-33_ by the tug's crew was not beyond the range of +possibility; and their adventures during the perilous cruise which the +treachery and deceit of Benson extended until they found themselves in +the waters of the far South Pacific with depleted stores and poisoned +water-casks, while bordering upon the fantastic, appeared logical +enough as narrated, event by event, in the manuscript. + +Caprona has always been considered a more or less mythical land, though +it is vouched for by an eminent navigator of the eighteenth century; +but Bowen's narrative made it seem very real, however many miles of +trackless ocean lay between us and it. Yes, the narrative had us +guessing. We were agreed that it was most improbable; but neither of +us could say that anything which it contained was beyond the range of +possibility. The weird flora and fauna of Caspak were as possible +under the thick, warm atmospheric conditions of the super-heated crater +as they were in the Mesozoic era under almost exactly similar +conditions, which were then probably world-wide. The assistant +secretary had heard of Caproni and his discoveries, but admitted that +he never had taken much stock in the one nor the other. We were agreed +that the one statement most difficult of explanation was that which +reported the entire absence of human young among the various tribes +with which Tyler had had intercourse. This was the one irreconcilable +statement of the manuscript. A world of adults! It was impossible. + +We speculated upon the probable fate of Bradley and his party of +English sailors. Tyler had found the graves of two of them; how many +more might have perished! And Miss La Rue--could a young girl long +have survived the horrors of Caspak after having been separated from +all of her own kind? The assistant secretary wondered if Nobs still +was with her, and then we both smiled at this tacit acceptance of the +truth of the whole uncanny tale: + +"I suppose I'm a fool," remarked the assistant secretary; "but by +George, I can't help believing it, and I can see that girl now, with +the big Airedale at her side protecting her from the terrors of a +million years ago. I can visualize the entire scene--the apelike +Grimaldi men huddled in their filthy caves; the huge pterodactyls +soaring through the heavy air upon their bat-like wings; the mighty +dinosaurs moving their clumsy hulks beneath the dark shadows of +preglacial forests--the dragons which we considered myths until science +taught us that they were the true recollections of the first man, +handed down through countless ages by word of mouth from father to son +out of the unrecorded dawn of humanity." + +"It is stupendous--if true," I replied. "And to think that possibly +they are still there--Tyler and Miss La Rue--surrounded by hideous +dangers, and that possibly Bradley still lives, and some of his party! +I can't help hoping all the time that Bowen and the girl have found the +others; the last Bowen knew of them, there were six left, all told--the +mate Bradley, the engineer Olson, and Wilson, Whitely, Brady and +Sinclair. There might be some hope for them if they could join forces; +but separated, I'm afraid they couldn't last long." + +"If only they hadn't let the German prisoners capture the _U-33_! Bowen +should have had better judgment than to have trusted them at all. The +chances are von Schoenvorts succeeded in getting safely back to Kiel +and is strutting around with an Iron Cross this very minute. With a +large supply of oil from the wells they discovered in Caspak, with +plenty of water and ample provisions, there is no reason why they +couldn't have negotiated the submerged tunnel beneath the barrier +cliffs and made good their escape." + +"I don't like 'em," said the assistant secretary; "but sometimes you +got to hand it to 'em." + +"Yes," I growled, "and there's nothing I'd enjoy more than _handing it +to them_!" And then the telephone-bell rang. + +The assistant secretary answered, and as I watched him, I saw his jaw +drop and his face go white. "My God!" he exclaimed as he hung up the +receiver as one in a trance. "It can't be!" + +"What?" I asked. + +"Mr. Tyler is dead," he answered in a dull voice. "He died at sea, +suddenly, yesterday." + +The next ten days were occupied in burying Mr. Bowen J. Tyler, Sr., and +arranging plans for the succor of his son. Mr. Tom Billings, the late +Mr. Tyler's secretary, did it all. He is force, energy, initiative and +good judgment combined and personified. I never have beheld a more +dynamic young man. He handled lawyers, courts and executors as a +sculptor handles his modeling clay. He formed, fashioned and forced +them to his will. He had been a classmate of Bowen Tyler at college, +and a fraternity brother, and before that he had been an impoverished +and improvident cow-puncher on one of the great Tyler ranches. Tyler, +Sr., had picked him out of thousands of employees and made him; or +rather Tyler had given him the opportunity, and then Billings had made +himself. Tyler, Jr., as good a judge of men as his father, had taken +him into his friendship, and between the two of them they had turned +out a man who would have died for a Tyler as quickly as he would have +for his flag. Yet there was none of the sycophant or fawner in +Billings; ordinarily I do not wax enthusiastic about men, but this man +Billings comes as close to my conception of what a regular man should +be as any I have ever met. I venture to say that before Bowen J. Tyler +sent him to college he had never heard the word _ethics_, and yet I am +equally sure that in all his life he never has transgressed a single +tenet of the code of ethics of an American gentleman. + +Ten days after they brought Mr. Tyler's body off the _Toreador_, we +steamed out into the Pacific in search of Caprona. There were forty in +the party, including the master and crew of the _Toreador_; and Billings +the indomitable was in command. We had a long and uninteresting search +for Caprona, for the old map upon which the assistant secretary had +finally located it was most inaccurate. When its grim walls finally +rose out of the ocean's mists before us, we were so far south that it +was a question as to whether we were in the South Pacific or the +Antarctic. Bergs were numerous, and it was very cold. + +All during the trip Billings had steadfastly evaded questions as to how +we were to enter Caspak after we had found Caprona. Bowen Tyler's +manuscript had made it perfectly evident to all that the subterranean +outlet of the Caspakian River was the only means of ingress or egress +to the crater world beyond the impregnable cliffs. Tyler's party had +been able to navigate this channel because their craft had been a +submarine; but the _Toreador_ could as easily have flown over the cliffs +as sailed under them. Jimmy Hollis and Colin Short whiled away many an +hour inventing schemes for surmounting the obstacle presented by the +barrier cliffs, and making ridiculous wagers as to which one Tom +Billings had in mind; but immediately we were all assured that we had +raised Caprona, Billings called us together. + +"There was no use in talking about these things," he said, "until we +found the island. At best it can be but conjecture on our part until +we have been able to scrutinize the coast closely. Each of us has +formed a mental picture of the Capronian seacoast from Bowen's +manuscript, and it is not likely that any two of these pictures +resemble each other, or that any of them resemble the coast as we shall +presently find it. I have in view three plans for scaling the cliffs, +and the means for carrying out each is in the hold. There is an +electric drill with plenty of waterproof cable to reach from the ship's +dynamos to the cliff-top when the _Toreador_ is anchored at a safe +distance from shore, and there is sufficient half-inch iron rod to +build a ladder from the base to the top of the cliff. It would be a +long, arduous and dangerous work to bore the holes and insert the rungs +of the ladder from the bottom upward; yet it can be done. + +"I also have a life-saving mortar with which we might be able to throw +a line over the summit of the cliffs; but this plan would necessitate +one of us climbing to the top with the chances more than even that the +line would cut at the summit, or the hooks at the upper end would slip. + +"My third plan seems to me the most feasible. You all saw a number of +large, heavy boxes lowered into the hold before we sailed. I know you +did, because you asked me what they contained and commented upon the +large letter 'H' which was painted upon each box. These boxes contain +the various parts of a hydro-aeroplane. I purpose assembling this upon +the strip of beach described in Bowen's manuscript--the beach where he +found the dead body of the apelike man--provided there is sufficient +space above high water; otherwise we shall have to assemble it on deck +and lower it over the side. After it is assembled, I shall carry +tackle and ropes to the cliff-top, and then it will be comparatively +simple to hoist the search-party and its supplies in safety. Or I can +make a sufficient number of trips to land the entire party in the +valley beyond the barrier; all will depend, of course, upon what my +first reconnaissance reveals." + +That afternoon we steamed slowly along the face of Caprona's towering +barrier. + +"You see now," remarked Billings as we craned our necks to scan the +summit thousands of feet above us, "how futile it would have been to +waste our time in working out details of a plan to surmount those." And +he jerked his thumb toward the cliffs. "It would take weeks, possibly +months, to construct a ladder to the top. I had no conception of their +formidable height. Our mortar would not carry a line halfway to the +crest of the lowest point. There is no use discussing any plan other +than the hydro-aeroplane. We'll find the beach and get busy." + +Late the following morning the lookout announced that he could discern +surf about a mile ahead; and as we approached, we all saw the line of +breakers broken by a long sweep of rolling surf upon a narrow beach. +The launch was lowered, and five of us made a landing, getting a good +ducking in the ice-cold waters in the doing of it; but we were rewarded +by the finding of the clean-picked bones of what might have been the +skeleton of a high order of ape or a very low order of man, lying close +to the base of the cliff. Billings was satisfied, as were the rest of +us, that this was the beach mentioned by Bowen, and we further found +that there was ample room to assemble the sea-plane. + +Billings, having arrived at a decision, lost no time in acting, with +the result that before mid-afternoon we had landed all the large boxes +marked "H" upon the beach, and were busily engaged in opening them. +Two days later the plane was assembled and tuned. We loaded tackles +and ropes, water, food and ammunition in it, and then we each implored +Billings to let us be the one to accompany him. But he would take no +one. That was Billings; if there was any especially difficult or +dangerous work to be done, that one man could do, Billings always did +it himself. If he needed assistance, he never called for +volunteers--just selected the man or men he considered best qualified +for the duty. He said that he considered the principles underlying all +volunteer service fundamentally wrong, and that it seemed to him that +calling for volunteers reflected upon the courage and loyalty of the +entire command. + +We rolled the plane down to the water's edge, and Billings mounted the +pilot's seat. There was a moment's delay as he assured himself that he +had everything necessary. Jimmy Hollis went over his armament and +ammunition to see that nothing had been omitted. Besides pistol and +rifle, there was the machine-gun mounted in front of him on the plane, +and ammunition for all three. Bowen's account of the terrors of Caspak +had impressed us all with the necessity for proper means of defense. + +At last all was ready. The motor was started, and we pushed the plane +out into the surf. A moment later, and she was skimming seaward. +Gently she rose from the surface of the water, executed a wide spiral +as she mounted rapidly, circled once far above us and then disappeared +over the crest of the cliffs. We all stood silent and expectant, our +eyes glued upon the towering summit above us. Hollis, who was now in +command, consulted his wrist-watch at frequent intervals. + +"Gad," exclaimed Short, "we ought to be hearing from him pretty soon!" + +Hollis laughed nervously. "He's been gone only ten minutes," he +announced. + +"Seems like an hour," snapped Short. "What's that? Did you hear that? +He's firing! It's the machine-gun! Oh, Lord; and here we are as +helpless as a lot of old ladies ten thousand miles away! We can't do a +thing. We don't know what's happening. Why didn't he let one of us go +with him?" + +Yes, it was the machine-gun. We would hear it distinctly for at least +a minute. Then came silence. That was two weeks ago. We have had no +sign nor signal from Tom Billings since. + + + +Chapter 2 + +I'll never forget my first impressions of Caspak as I circled in, high +over the surrounding cliffs. From the plane I looked down through a +mist upon the blurred landscape beneath me. The hot, humid atmosphere +of Caspak condenses as it is fanned by the cold Antarctic air-currents +which sweep across the crater's top, sending a tenuous ribbon of vapor +far out across the Pacific. Through this the picture gave one the +suggestion of a colossal impressionistic canvas in greens and browns +and scarlets and yellows surrounding the deep blue of the inland +sea--just blobs of color taking form through the tumbling mist. + +I dived close to the cliffs and skirted them for several miles without +finding the least indication of a suitable landing-place; and then I +swung back at a lower level, looking for a clearing close to the bottom +of the mighty escarpment; but I could find none of sufficient area to +insure safety. I was flying pretty low by this time, not only looking +for landing places but watching the myriad life beneath me. I was down +pretty well toward the south end of the island, where an arm of the +lake reaches far inland, and I could see the surface of the water +literally black with creatures of some sort. I was too far up to +recognize individuals, but the general impression was of a vast army of +amphibious monsters. The land was almost equally alive with crawling, +leaping, running, flying things. It was one of the latter which nearly +did for me while my attention was fixed upon the weird scene below. + +The first intimation I had of it was the sudden blotting out of the +sunlight from above, and as I glanced quickly up, I saw a most terrific +creature swooping down upon me. It must have been fully eighty feet +long from the end of its long, hideous beak to the tip of its thick, +short tail, with an equal spread of wings. It was coming straight for +me and hissing frightfully--I could hear it above the whir of the +propeller. It was coming straight down toward the muzzle of the +machine-gun and I let it have it right in the breast; but still it came +for me, so that I had to dive and turn, though I was dangerously close +to earth. + +The thing didn't miss me by a dozen feet, and when I rose, it wheeled +and followed me, but only to the cooler air close to the level of the +cliff-tops; there it turned again and dropped. Something--man's +natural love of battle and the chase, I presume--impelled me to pursue +it, and so I too circled and dived. The moment I came down into the +warm atmosphere of Caspak, the creature came for me again, rising above +me so that it might swoop down upon me. Nothing could better have +suited my armament, since my machine-gun was pointed upward at an angle +of about 45 degrees and could not be either depressed or elevated by the +pilot. If I had brought someone along with me, we could have raked the +great reptile from almost any position, but as the creature's mode of +attack was always from above, he always found me ready with a hail of +bullets. The battle must have lasted a minute or more before the thing +suddenly turned completely over in the air and fell to the ground. + +Bowen and I roomed together at college, and I learned a lot from him +outside my regular course. He was a pretty good scholar despite his +love of fun, and his particular hobby was paleontology. He used to +tell me about the various forms of animal and vegetable life which had +covered the globe during former eras, and so I was pretty well +acquainted with the fishes, amphibians, reptiles, and mammals of +paleolithic times. I knew that the thing that had attacked me was some +sort of pterodactyl which should have been extinct millions of years +ago. It was all that I needed to realize that Bowen had exaggerated +nothing in his manuscript. + +Having disposed of my first foe, I set myself once more to search for a +landing-place near to the base of the cliffs beyond which my party +awaited me. I knew how anxious they would be for word from me, and I +was equally anxious to relieve their minds and also to get them and our +supplies well within Caspak, so that we might set off about our +business of finding and rescuing Bowen Tyler; but the pterodactyl's +carcass had scarcely fallen before I was surrounded by at least a dozen +of the hideous things, some large, some small, but all bent upon my +destruction. I could not cope with them all, and so I rose rapidly +from among them to the cooler strata wherein they dared not follow; and +then I recalled that Bowen's narrative distinctly indicated that the +farther north one traveled in Caspak, the fewer were the terrible +reptiles which rendered human life impossible at the southern end of +the island. + +There seemed nothing now but to search out a more northerly +landing-place and then return to the _Toreador_ and transport my +companions, two by two, over the cliffs and deposit them at the +rendezvous. As I flew north, the temptation to explore overcame me. I +knew that I could easily cover Caspak and return to the beach with less +petrol than I had in my tanks; and there was the hope, too, that I +might find Bowen or some of his party. The broad expanse of the inland +sea lured me out over its waters, and as I crossed, I saw at either +extremity of the great body of water an island--one to the south and +one to the north; but I did not alter my course to examine either +closely, leaving that to a later time. + +The further shore of the sea revealed a much narrower strip of land +between the cliffs and the water than upon the western side; but it was +a hillier and more open country. There were splendid landing-places, +and in the distance, toward the north, I thought I descried a village; +but of that I was not positive. However, as I approached the land, I +saw a number of human figures apparently pursuing one who fled across a +broad expanse of meadow. As I dropped lower to have a better look at +these people, they caught the whirring of my propellers and looked +aloft. They paused an instant--pursuers and pursued; and then they +broke and raced for the shelter of the nearest wood. Almost +instantaneously a huge bulk swooped down upon me, and as I looked up, I +realized that there were flying reptiles even in this part of Caspak. +The creature dived for my right wing so quickly that nothing but a +sheer drop could have saved me. I was already close to the ground, so +that my maneuver was extremely dangerous; but I was in a fair way of +making it successfully when I saw that I was too closely approaching a +large tree. My effort to dodge the tree and the pterodactyl at the +same time resulted disastrously. One wing touched an upper branch; the +plane tipped and swung around, and then, out of control, dashed into +the branches of the tree, where it came to rest, battered and torn, +forty feet above the ground. + +Hissing loudly, the huge reptile swept close above the tree in which my +plane had lodged, circled twice over me and then flapped away toward +the south. As I guessed then and was to learn later, forests are the +surest sanctuary from these hideous creatures, which, with their +enormous spread of wing and their great weight, are as much out of +place among trees as is a seaplane. + +For a minute or so I clung there to my battered flyer, now useless +beyond redemption, my brain numbed by the frightful catastrophe that +had befallen me. All my plans for the succor of Bowen and Miss La Rue +had depended upon this craft, and in a few brief minutes my own selfish +love of adventure had wrecked their hopes and mine. And what effect it +might have upon the future of the balance of the rescuing expedition I +could not even guess. Their lives, too, might be sacrificed to my +suicidal foolishness. That I was doomed seemed inevitable; but I can +honestly say that the fate of my friends concerned me more greatly than +did my own. + +Beyond the barrier cliffs my party was even now nervously awaiting my +return. Presently apprehension and fear would claim them--and they +would never know! They would attempt to scale the cliffs--of that I +was sure; but I was not so positive that they would succeed; and after +a while they would turn back, what there were left of them, and go +sadly and mournfully upon their return journey to home. Home! I set +my jaws and tried to forget the word, for I knew that I should never +again see home. + +And what of Bowen and his girl? I had doomed them too. They would +never even know that an attempt had been made to rescue them. If they +still lived, they might some day come upon the ruined remnants of this +great plane hanging in its lofty sepulcher and hazard vain guesses and +be filled with wonder; but they would never know; and I could not but +be glad that they would not know that Tom Billings had sealed their +death-warrants by his criminal selfishness. + +All these useless regrets were getting me in a bad way; but at last I +shook myself and tried to put such things out of my mind and take hold +of conditions as they existed and do my level best to wrest victory +from defeat. I was badly shaken up and bruised, but considered myself +mighty lucky to escape with my life. The plane hung at a precarious +angle, so that it was with difficulty and considerable danger that I +climbed from it into the tree and then to the ground. + +My predicament was grave. Between me and my friends lay an inland sea +fully sixty miles wide at this point and an estimated land-distance of +some three hundred miles around the northern end of the sea, through +such hideous dangers as I am perfectly free to admit had me pretty well +buffaloed. I had seen quite enough of Caspak this day to assure me +that Bowen had in no way exaggerated its perils. As a matter of fact, +I am inclined to believe that he had become so accustomed to them +before he started upon his manuscript that he rather slighted them. As +I stood there beneath that tree--a tree which should have been part of +a coal-bed countless ages since--and looked out across a sea teeming +with frightful life--life which should have been fossil before God +conceived of Adam--I would not have given a minim of stale beer for my +chances of ever seeing my friends or the outside world again; yet then +and there I swore to fight my way as far through this hideous land as +circumstances would permit. I had plenty of ammunition, an automatic +pistol and a heavy rifle--the latter one of twenty added to our +equipment on the strength of Bowen's description of the huge beasts of +prey which ravaged Caspak. My greatest danger lay in the hideous +reptilia whose low nervous organizations permitted their carnivorous +instincts to function for several minutes after they had ceased to live. + +But to these things I gave less thought than to the sudden frustration +of all our plans. With the bitterest of thoughts I condemned myself +for the foolish weakness that had permitted me to be drawn from the +main object of my flight into premature and useless exploration. It +seemed to me then that I must be totally eliminated from further search +for Bowen, since, as I estimated it, the three hundred miles of +Caspakian territory I must traverse to reach the base of the cliffs +beyond which my party awaited me were practically impassable for a +single individual unaccustomed to Caspakian life and ignorant of all +that lay before him. Yet I could not give up hope entirely. My duty +lay clear before me; I must follow it while life remained to me, and so +I set forth toward the north. + +The country through which I took my way was as lovely as it was +unusual--I had almost said unearthly, for the plants, the trees, the +blooms were not of the earth that I knew. They were larger, the colors +more brilliant and the shapes startling, some almost to grotesqueness, +though even such added to the charm and romance of the landscape as the +giant cacti render weirdly beautiful the waste spots of the sad Mohave. +And over all the sun shone huge and round and red, a monster sun above +a monstrous world, its light dispersed by the humid air of Caspak--the +warm, moist air which lies sluggish upon the breast of this great +mother of life, Nature's mightiest incubator. + +All about me, in every direction, was life. It moved through the +tree-tops and among the boles; it displayed itself in widening and +intermingling circles upon the bosom of the sea; it leaped from the +depths; I could hear it in a dense wood at my right, the murmur of it +rising and falling in ceaseless volumes of sound, riven at intervals by +a horrid scream or a thunderous roar which shook the earth; and always +I was haunted by that inexplicable sensation that unseen eyes were +watching me, that soundless feet dogged my trail. I am neither nervous +nor highstrung; but the burden of responsibility upon me weighed +heavily, so that I was more cautious than is my wont. I turned often +to right and left and rear lest I be surprised, and I carried my rifle +at the ready in my hand. Once I could have sworn that among the many +creatures dimly perceived amidst the shadows of the wood I saw a human +figure dart from one cover to another, but I could not be sure. + +For the most part I skirted the wood, making occasional detours rather +than enter those forbidding depths of gloom, though many times I was +forced to pass through arms of the forest which extended to the very +shore of the inland sea. There was so sinister a suggestion in the +uncouth sounds and the vague glimpses of moving things within the +forest, of the menace of strange beasts and possibly still stranger +men, that I always breathed more freely when I had passed once more +into open country. + +I had traveled northward for perhaps an hour, still haunted by the +conviction that I was being stalked by some creature which kept always +hidden among the trees and shrubbery to my right and a little to my +rear, when for the hundredth time I was attracted by a sound from that +direction, and turning, saw some animal running rapidly through the +forest toward me. There was no longer any effort on its part at +concealment; it came on through the underbrush swiftly, and I was +confident that whatever it was, it had finally gathered the courage to +charge me boldly. Before it finally broke into plain view, I became +aware that it was not alone, for a few yards in its rear a second thing +thrashed through the leafy jungle. Evidently I was to be attacked in +force by a pair of hunting beasts or men. + +And then through the last clump of waving ferns broke the figure of the +foremost creature, which came leaping toward me on light feet as I +stood with my rifle to my shoulder covering the point at which I had +expected it would emerge. I must have looked foolish indeed if my +surprise and consternation were in any way reflected upon my +countenance as I lowered my rifle and gazed incredulous at the lithe +figure of the girl speeding swiftly in my direction. But I did not +have long to stand thus with lowered weapon, for as she came, I saw her +cast an affrighted glance over her shoulder, and at the same moment +there broke from the jungle at the same spot at which I had seen her, +the hugest cat I had ever looked upon. + +At first I took the beast for a saber-tooth tiger, as it was quite the +most fearsome-appearing beast one could imagine; but it was not that +dread monster of the past, though quite formidable enough to satisfy +the most fastidious thrill-hunter. On it came, grim and terrible, its +baleful eyes glaring above its distended jaws, its lips curled in a +frightful snarl which exposed a whole mouthful of formidable teeth. At +sight of me it had abandoned its impetuous rush and was now sneaking +slowly toward us; while the girl, a long knife in her hand, took her +stand bravely at my left and a little to my rear. She had called +something to me in a strange tongue as she raced toward me, and now she +spoke again; but what she said I could not then, of course, know--only +that her tones were sweet, well modulated and free from any suggestion +of panic. + +Facing the huge cat, which I now saw was an enormous panther, I waited +until I could place a shot where I felt it would do the most good, for +at best a frontal shot at any of the large carnivora is a ticklish +matter. I had some advantage in that the beast was not charging; its +head was held low and its back exposed; and so at forty yards I took +careful aim at its spine at the junction of neck and shoulders. But at +the same instant, as though sensing my intention, the great creature +lifted its head and leaped forward in full charge. To fire at that +sloping forehead I knew would be worse than useless, and so I quickly +shifted my aim and pulled the trigger, hoping against hope that the +soft-nosed bullet and the heavy charge of powder would have sufficient +stopping effect to give me time to place a second shot. + +In answer to the report of the rifle I had the satisfaction of seeing +the brute spring into the air, turning a complete somersault; but it +was up again almost instantly, though in the brief second that it took +it to scramble to its feet and get its bearings, it exposed its left +side fully toward me, and a second bullet went crashing through its +heart. Down it went for the second time--and then up and at me. The +vitality of these creatures of Caspak is one of the marvelous features +of this strange world and bespeaks the low nervous organization of the +old paleolithic life which has been so long extinct in other portions +of the world. + +I put a third bullet into the beast at three paces, and then I thought +that I was done for; but it rolled over and stopped at my feet, stone +dead. I found that my second bullet had torn its heart almost +completely away, and yet it had lived to charge ferociously upon me, +and but for my third shot would doubtless have slain me before it +finally expired--or as Bowen Tyler so quaintly puts it, before it knew +that it was dead. + +With the panther quite evidently conscious of the fact that dissolution +had overtaken it, I turned toward the girl, who was regarding me with +evident admiration and not a little awe, though I must admit that my +rifle claimed quite as much of her attention as did I. She was quite +the most wonderful animal that I have ever looked upon, and what few of +her charms her apparel hid, it quite effectively succeeded in +accentuating. A bit of soft, undressed leather was caught over her +left shoulder and beneath her right breast, falling upon her left side +to her hip and upon the right to a metal band which encircled her leg +above the knee and to which the lowest point of the hide was attached. +About her waist was a loose leather belt, to the center of which was +attached the scabbard belonging to her knife. There was a single +armlet between her right shoulder and elbow, and a series of them +covered her left forearm from elbow to wrist. These, I learned later, +answered the purpose of a shield against knife attack when the left arm +is raised in guard across the breast or face. + +Her masses of heavy hair were held in place by a broad metal band which +bore a large triangular ornament directly in the center of her +forehead. This ornament appeared to be a huge turquoise, while the +metal of all her ornaments was beaten, virgin gold, inlaid in intricate +design with bits of mother-of-pearl and tiny pieces of stone of various +colors. From the left shoulder depended a leopard's tail, while her +feet were shod with sturdy little sandals. The knife was her only +weapon. Its blade was of iron, the grip was wound with hide and +protected by a guard of three out-bowing strips of flat iron, and upon +the top of the hilt was a knob of gold. + +I took in much of this in the few seconds during which we stood facing +each other, and I also observed another salient feature of her +appearance: she was frightfully dirty! Her face and limbs and garment +were streaked with mud and perspiration, and yet even so, I felt that I +had never looked upon so perfect and beautiful a creature as she. Her +figure beggars description, and equally so, her face. Were I one of +these writer-fellows, I should probably say that her features were +Grecian, but being neither a writer nor a poet I can do her greater +justice by saying that she combined all of the finest lines that one +sees in the typical American girl's face rather than the pronounced +sheeplike physiognomy of the Greek goddess. No, even the dirt couldn't +hide that fact; she was beautiful beyond compare. + +As we stood looking at each other, a slow smile came to her face, +parting her symmetrical lips and disclosing a row of strong white teeth. + +"Galu?" she asked with rising inflection. + +And remembering that I read in Bowen's manuscript that Galu seemed to +indicate a higher type of man, I answered by pointing to myself and +repeating the word. Then she started off on a regular catechism, if I +could judge by her inflection, for I certainly understood no word of +what she said. All the time the girl kept glancing toward the forest, +and at last she touched my arm and pointed in that direction. + +Turning, I saw a hairy figure of a manlike thing standing watching us, +and presently another and another emerged from the jungle and joined +the leader until there must have been at least twenty of them. They +were entirely naked. Their bodies were covered with hair, and though +they stood upon their feet without touching their hands to the ground, +they had a very ape-like appearance, since they stooped forward and had +very long arms and quite apish features. They were not pretty to look +upon with their close-set eyes, flat noses, long upper lips and +protruding yellow fangs. + +"_Alus_!" said the girl. + +I had reread Bowen's adventures so often that I knew them almost by +heart, and so now I knew that I was looking upon the last remnant of +that ancient man-race--the Alus of a forgotten period--the speechless +man of antiquity. + +"_Kazor_!" cried the girl, and at the same moment the Alus came jabbering +toward us. They made strange growling, barking noises, as with much +baring of fangs they advanced upon us. They were armed only with +nature's weapons--powerful muscles and giant fangs; yet I knew that +these were quite sufficient to overcome us had we nothing better to +offer in defense, and so I drew my pistol and fired at the leader. He +dropped like a stone, and the others turned and fled. Once again the +girl smiled her slow smile and stepping closer, caressed the barrel of +my automatic. As she did so, her fingers came in contact with mine, +and a sudden thrill ran through me, which I attributed to the fact that +it had been so long since I had seen a woman of any sort or kind. + +She said something to me in her low, liquid tones; but I could not +understand her, and then she pointed toward the north and started away. +I followed her, for my way was north too; but had it been south I still +should have followed, so hungry was I for human companionship in this +world of beasts and reptiles and half-men. + +We walked along, the girl talking a great deal and seeming mystified +that I could not understand her. Her silvery laugh rang merrily when I +in turn essayed to speak to her, as though my language was the +quaintest thing she ever had heard. Often after fruitless attempts to +make me understand she would hold her palm toward me, saying, "_Galu_!" +and then touch my breast or arm and cry, "_Alu_, _alu_!" I knew what she +meant, for I had learned from Bowen's narrative the negative gesture +and the two words which she repeated. She meant that I was no Galu, as +I claimed, but an Alu, or speechless one. Yet every time she said this +she laughed again, and so infectious were her tones that I could only +join her. It was only natural, too, that she should be mystified by my +inability to comprehend her or to make her comprehend me, for from the +club-men, the lowest human type in Caspak to have speech, to the golden +race of Galus, the tongues of the various tribes are identical--except +for amplifications in the rising scale of evolution. She, who is a +Galu, can understand one of the Bo-lu and make herself understood to +him, or to a hatchet-man, a spear-man or an archer. The Ho-lus, or +apes, the Alus and myself were the only creatures of human semblance +with which she could hold no converse; yet it was evident that her +intelligence told her that I was neither Ho-lu nor Alu, neither +anthropoid ape nor speechless man. + +Yet she did not despair, but set out to teach me her language; and had +it not been that I worried so greatly over the fate of Bowen and my +companions of the _Toreador_, I could have wished the period of +instruction prolonged. + +I never have been what one might call a ladies' man, though I like +their company immensely, and during my college days and since have made +various friends among the sex. I think that I rather appeal to a +certain type of girl for the reason that I never make love to them; I +leave that to the numerous others who do it infinitely better than I +could hope to, and take my pleasure out of girls' society in what seem +to be more rational ways--dancing, golfing, boating, riding, tennis, +and the like. Yet in the company of this half-naked little savage I +found a new pleasure that was entirely distinct from any that I ever +had experienced. When she touched me, I thrilled as I had never before +thrilled in contact with another woman. I could not quite understand +it, for I am sufficiently sophisticated to know that this is a symptom +of love and I certainly did not love this filthy little barbarian with +her broken, unkempt nails and her skin so besmeared with mud and the +green of crushed foliage that it was difficult to say what color it +originally had been. But if she was outwardly uncouth, her clear eyes +and strong white, even teeth, her silvery laugh and her queenly +carriage, bespoke an innate fineness which dirt could not quite +successfully conceal. + +The sun was low in the heavens when we came upon a little river which +emptied into a large bay at the foot of low cliffs. Our journey so far +had been beset with constant danger, as is every journey in this +frightful land. I have not bored you with a recital of the wearying +successions of attacks by the multitude of creatures which were +constantly crossing our path or deliberately stalking us. We were +always upon the alert; for here, to paraphrase, eternal vigilance is +indeed the price of life. + +I had managed to progress a little in the acquisition of a knowledge of +her tongue, so that I knew many of the animals and reptiles by their +Caspakian names, and trees and ferns and grasses. I knew the words for +_sea_ and _river_ and _cliff_, for _sky_ and _sun_ and _cloud_. Yes, I was getting +along finely, and then it occurred to me that I didn't know my +companion's name; so I pointed to myself and said, "Tom," and to her +and raised my eyebrows in interrogation. The girl ran her fingers into +that mass of hair and looked puzzled. I repeated the action a dozen +times. + +"Tom," she said finally in that clear, sweet, liquid voice. "Tom!" + +I had never thought much of my name before; but when she spoke it, it +sounded to me for the first time in my life like a mighty nice name, +and then she brightened suddenly and tapped her own breast and said: +"Ajor!" + +"Ajor!" I repeated, and she laughed and struck her palms together. + +Well, we knew each other's names now, and that was some satisfaction. +I rather liked hers--Ajor! And she seemed to like mine, for she +repeated it. + +We came to the cliffs beside the little river where it empties into the +bay with the great inland sea beyond. The cliffs were weather-worn and +rotted, and in one place a deep hollow ran back beneath the overhanging +stone for several feet, suggesting shelter for the night. There were +loose rocks strewn all about with which I might build a barricade +across the entrance to the cave, and so I halted there and pointed out +the place to Ajor, trying to make her understand that we would spend +the night there. + +As soon as she grasped my meaning, she assented with the Caspakian +equivalent of an affirmative nod, and then touching my rifle, motioned +me to follow her to the river. At the bank she paused, removed her +belt and dagger, dropping them to the ground at her side; then +unfastening the lower edge of her garment from the metal leg-band to +which it was attached, slipped it off her left shoulder and let it drop +to the ground around her feet. It was done so naturally, so simply and +so quickly that it left me gasping like a fish out of water. Turning, +she flashed a smile at me and then dived into the river, and there she +bathed while I stood guard over her. For five or ten minutes she +splashed about, and when she emerged her glistening skin was smooth and +white and beautiful. Without means of drying herself, she simply +ignored what to me would have seemed a necessity, and in a moment was +arrayed in her simple though effective costume. + +It was now within an hour of darkness, and as I was nearly famished, I +led the way back about a quarter of a mile to a low meadow where we had +seen antelope and small horses a short time before. Here I brought +down a young buck, the report of my rifle sending the balance of the +herd scampering for the woods, where they were met by a chorus of +hideous roars as the carnivora took advantage of their panic and leaped +among them. + +With my hunting-knife I removed a hind-quarter, and then we returned to +camp. Here I gathered a great quantity of wood from fallen trees, Ajor +helping me; but before I built a fire, I also gathered sufficient loose +rock to build my barricade against the frightful terrors of the night +to come. + +I shall never forget the expression upon Ajor's face as she saw me +strike a match and light the kindling beneath our camp-fire. It was +such an expression as might transform a mortal face with awe as its +owner beheld the mysterious workings of divinity. It was evident that +Ajor was quite unfamiliar with modern methods of fire-making. She had +thought my rifle and pistol wonderful; but these tiny slivers of wood +which from a magic rub brought flame to the camp hearth were indeed +miracles to her. + +As the meat roasted above the fire, Ajor and I tried once again to +talk; but though copiously filled with incentive, gestures and sounds, +the conversation did not flourish notably. And then Ajor took up in +earnest the task of teaching me her language. She commenced, as I +later learned, with the simplest form of speech known to Caspak or for +that matter to the world--that employed by the Bo-lu. I found it far +from difficult, and even though it was a great handicap upon my +instructor that she could not speak my language, she did remarkably +well and demonstrated that she possessed ingenuity and intelligence of +a high order. + +After we had eaten, I added to the pile of firewood so that I could +replenish the fire before the entrance to our barricade, believing this +as good a protection against the carnivora as we could have; and then +Ajor and I sat down before it, and the lesson proceeded, while from all +about us came the weird and awesome noises of the Caspakian night--the +moaning and the coughing and roaring of the tigers, the panthers and +the lions, the barking and the dismal howling of a wolf, jackal and +hyaenadon, the shrill shrieks of stricken prey and the hissing of the +great reptiles; the voice of man alone was silent. + +But though the voice of this choir-terrible rose and fell from far and +near in all directions, reaching at time such a tremendous volume of +sound that the earth shook to it, yet so engrossed was I in my lesson +and in my teacher that often I was deaf to what at another time would +have filled me with awe. The face and voice of the beautiful girl who +leaned so eagerly toward me as she tried to explain the meaning of some +word or correct my pronunciation of another quite entirely occupied my +every faculty of perception. The firelight shone upon her animated +features and sparkling eyes; it accentuated the graceful motions of her +gesturing arms and hands; it sparkled from her white teeth and from her +golden ornaments, and glistened on the smooth firmness of her perfect +skin. I am afraid that often I was more occupied with admiration of +this beautiful animal than with a desire for knowledge; but be that as +it may, I nevertheless learned much that evening, though part of what I +learned had naught to do with any new language. + +Ajor seemed determined that I should speak Caspakian as quickly as +possible, and I thought I saw in her desire a little of that +all-feminine trait which has come down through all the ages from the +first lady of the world--curiosity. Ajor desired that I should speak +her tongue in order that she might satisfy a curiosity concerning me +that was filling her to a point where she was in danger of bursting; of +that I was positive. She was a regular little animated question-mark. +She bubbled over with interrogations which were never to be satisfied +unless I learned to speak her tongue. Her eyes sparkled with +excitement; her hand flew in expressive gestures; her little tongue +raced with time; yet all to no avail. I could say _man_ and _tree_ and +_cliff_ and _lion_ and a number of other words in perfect Caspakian; but +such a vocabulary was only tantalizing; it did not lend itself well to +a very general conversation, and the result was that Ajor would wax so +wroth that she would clench her little fists and beat me on the breast +as hard as ever she could, and then she would sink back laughing as the +humor of the situation captured her. + +She was trying to teach me some verbs by going through the actions +herself as she repeated the proper word. We were very much +engrossed--so much so that we were giving no heed to what went on +beyond our cave--when Ajor stopped very suddenly, crying: "_Kazor_!" Now +she had been trying to teach me that _ju_ meant _stop_; so when she cried +_kazor_ and at the same time stopped, I thought for a moment that this +was part of my lesson--for the moment I forgot that _kazor_ means _beware_. +I therefore repeated the word after her; but when I saw the expression +in her eyes as they were directed past me and saw her point toward the +entrance to the cave, I turned quickly--to see a hideous face at the +small aperture leading out into the night. It was the fierce and +snarling countenance of a gigantic bear. I have hunted silvertips in +the White Mountains of Arizona and thought them quite the largest and +most formidable of big game; but from the appearance of the head of +this awful creature I judged that the largest grizzly I had ever seen +would shrink by comparison to the dimensions of a Newfoundland dog. + +Our fire was just within the cave, the smoke rising through the +apertures between the rocks that I had piled in such a way that they +arched inward toward the cliff at the top. The opening by means of +which we were to reach the outside was barricaded with a few large +fragments which did not by any means close it entirely; but through the +apertures thus left no large animal could gain ingress. I had depended +most, however, upon our fire, feeling that none of the dangerous +nocturnal beasts of prey would venture close to the flames. In this, +however, I was quite evidently in error, for the great bear stood with +his nose not a foot from the blaze, which was now low, owing to the +fact that I had been so occupied with my lesson and my teacher that I +had neglected to replenish it. + +Ajor whipped out her futile little knife and pointed to my rifle. At +the same time she spoke in a quite level voice entirely devoid of +nervousness or any evidence of fear or panic. I knew she was exhorting +me to fire upon the beast; but this I did not wish to do other than as +a last resort, for I was quite sure that even my heavy bullets would +not more than further enrage him--in which case he might easily force +an entrance to our cave. + +Instead of firing, I piled some more wood upon the fire, and as the +smoke and blaze arose in the beast's face, it backed away, growling +most frightfully; but I still could see two ugly points of light +blazing in the outer darkness and hear its growls rumbling terrifically +without. For some time the creature stood there watching the entrance +to our frail sanctuary while I racked my brains in futile endeavor to +plan some method of defense or escape. I knew full well that should +the bear make a determined effort to get at us, the rocks I had piled +as a barrier would come tumbling down about his giant shoulders like a +house of cards, and that he would walk directly in upon us. + +Ajor, having less knowledge of the effectiveness of firearms than I, +and therefore greater confidence in them, entreated me to shoot the +beast; but I knew that the chance that I could stop it with a single +shot was most remote, while that I should but infuriate it was real and +present; and so I waited for what seemed an eternity, watching those +devilish points of fire glaring balefully at us, and listening to the +ever-increasing volume of those seismic growls which seemed to rumble +upward from the bowels of the earth, shaking the very cliffs beneath +which we cowered, until at last I saw that the brute was again +approaching the aperture. It availed me nothing that I piled the blaze +high with firewood, until Ajor and I were near to roasting; on came +that mighty engine of destruction until once again the hideous face +yawned its fanged yawn directly within the barrier's opening. It stood +thus a moment, and then the head was withdrawn. I breathed a sigh of +relief, the thing had altered its intention and was going on in search +of other and more easily procurable prey; the fire had been too much +for it. + +But my joy was short-lived, and my heart sank once again as a moment +later I saw a mighty paw insinuated into the opening--a paw as large +around as a large dishpan. Very gently the paw toyed with the great +rock that partly closed the entrance, pushed and pulled upon it and +then very deliberately drew it outward and to one side. Again came the +head, and this time much farther into the cavern; but still the great +shoulders would not pass through the opening. Ajor moved closer to me +until her shoulder touched my side, and I thought I felt a slight +tremor run through her body, but otherwise she gave no indication of +fear. Involuntarily I threw my left arm about her and drew her to me +for an instant. It was an act of reassurance rather than a caress, +though I must admit that again and even in the face of death I thrilled +at the contact with her; and then I released her and threw my rifle to +my shoulder, for at last I had reached the conclusion that nothing more +could be gained by waiting. My only hope was to get as many shots into +the creature as I could before it was upon me. Already it had torn +away a second rock and was in the very act of forcing its huge bulk +through the opening it had now made. + +So now I took careful aim between its eyes; my right fingers closed +firmly and evenly upon the small of the stock, drawing back my +trigger-finger by the muscular action of the hand. The bullet could +not fail to hit its mark! I held my breath lest I swerve the muzzle a +hair by my breathing. I was as steady and cool as I ever had been upon +a target-range, and I had the full consciousness of a perfect hit in +anticipation; I knew that I could not miss. And then, as the bear +surged forward toward me, the hammer fell--futilely, upon an imperfect +cartridge. + +Almost simultaneously I heard from without a perfectly hellish roar; +the bear gave voice to a series of growls far transcending in volume +and ferocity anything that he had yet essayed and at the same time +backed quickly from the cave. For an instant I couldn't understand +what had happened to cause this sudden retreat when his prey was +practically within his clutches. The idea that the harmless clicking +of the hammer had frightened him was too ridiculous to entertain. +However, we had not long to wait before we could at least guess at the +cause of the diversion, for from without came mingled growls and roars +and the sound of great bodies thrashing about until the earth shook. +The bear had been attacked in the rear by some other mighty beast, and +the two were now locked in a titanic struggle for supremacy. With +brief respites, during which we could hear the labored breathing of the +contestants, the battle continued for the better part of an hour until +the sounds of combat grew gradually less and finally ceased entirely. + +At Ajor's suggestion, made by signs and a few of the words we knew in +common, I moved the fire directly to the entrance to the cave so that a +beast would have to pass directly through the flames to reach us, and +then we sat and waited for the victor of the battle to come and claim +his reward; but though we sat for a long time with our eyes glued to +the opening, we saw no sign of any beast. + +At last I signed to Ajor to lie down, for I knew that she must have +sleep, and I sat on guard until nearly morning, when the girl awoke and +insisted that I take some rest; nor would she be denied, but dragged me +down as she laughingly menaced me with her knife. + + + +Chapter 3 + +When I awoke, it was daylight, and I found Ajor squatting before a fine +bed of coals roasting a large piece of antelope-meat. Believe me, the +sight of the new day and the delicious odor of the cooking meat filled +me with renewed happiness and hope that had been all but expunged by +the experience of the previous night; and perhaps the slender figure of +the bright-faced girl proved also a potent restorative. She looked up +and smiled at me, showing those perfect teeth, and dimpling with +evident happiness--the most adorable picture that I had ever seen. I +recall that it was then I first regretted that she was only a little +untutored savage and so far beneath me in the scale of evolution. + +Her first act was to beckon me to follow her outside, and there she +pointed to the explanation of our rescue from the bear--a huge +saber-tooth tiger, its fine coat and its flesh torn to ribbons, lying +dead a few paces from our cave, and beside it, equally mangled, and +disemboweled, was the carcass of a huge cave-bear. To have had one's +life saved by a saber-tooth tiger, and in the twentieth century into +the bargain, was an experience that was to say the least unique; but it +had happened--I had the proof of it before my eyes. + +So enormous are the great carnivora of Caspak that they must feed +perpetually to support their giant thews, and the result is that they +will eat the meat of any other creature and will attack anything that +comes within their ken, no matter how formidable the quarry. From +later observation--I mention this as worthy the attention of +paleontologists and naturalists--I came to the conclusion that such +creatures as the cave-bear, the cave-lion and the saber-tooth tiger, as +well as the larger carnivorous reptiles make, ordinarily, two kills a +day--one in the morning and one after night. They immediately devour +the entire carcass, after which they lie up and sleep for a few hours. +Fortunately their numbers are comparatively few; otherwise there would +be no other life within Caspak. It is their very voracity that keeps +their numbers down to a point which permits other forms of life to +persist, for even in the season of love the great males often turn upon +their own mates and devour them, while both males and females +occasionally devour their young. How the human and semihuman races +have managed to survive during all the countless ages that these +conditions must have existed here is quite beyond me. + +After breakfast Ajor and I set out once more upon our northward +journey. We had gone but a little distance when we were attacked by a +number of apelike creatures armed with clubs. They seemed a little +higher in the scale than the Alus. Ajor told me they were Bo-lu, or +clubmen. A revolver-shot killed one and scattered the others; but +several times later during the day we were menaced by them, until we +had left their country and entered that of the Sto-lu, or hatchet-men. +These people were less hairy and more man-like; nor did they appear so +anxious to destroy us. Rather they were curious, and followed us for +some distance examining us most closely. They called out to us, and +Ajor answered them; but her replies did not seem to satisfy them, for +they gradually became threatening, and I think they were preparing to +attack us when a small deer that had been hiding in some low brush +suddenly broke cover and dashed across our front. We needed meat, for +it was near one o'clock and I was getting hungry; so I drew my pistol +and with a single shot dropped the creature in its tracks. The effect +upon the Bo-lu was electrical. Immediately they abandoned all thoughts +of war, and turning, scampered for the forest which fringed our path. + +That night we spent beside a little stream in the Sto-lu country. We +found a tiny cave in the rock bank, so hidden away that only chance +could direct a beast of prey to it, and after we had eaten of the +deer-meat and some fruit which Ajor gathered, we crawled into the +little hole, and with sticks and stones which I had gathered for the +purpose I erected a strong barricade inside the entrance. Nothing +could reach us without swimming and wading through the stream, and I +felt quite secure from attack. Our quarters were rather cramped. The +ceiling was so low that we could not stand up, and the floor so narrow +that it was with difficulty that we both wedged into it together; but +we were very tired, and so we made the most of it; and so great was the +feeling of security that I am sure I fell asleep as soon as I had +stretched myself beside Ajor. + +During the three days which followed, our progress was exasperatingly +slow. I doubt if we made ten miles in the entire three days. The +country was hideously savage, so that we were forced to spend hours at +a time in hiding from one or another of the great beasts which menaced +us continually. There were fewer reptiles; but the quantity of +carnivora seemed to have increased, and the reptiles that we did see +were perfectly gigantic. I shall never forget one enormous specimen +which we came upon browsing upon water-reeds at the edge of the great +sea. It stood well over twelve feet high at the rump, its highest +point, and with its enormously long tail and neck it was somewhere +between seventy-five and a hundred feet in length. Its head was +ridiculously small; its body was unarmored, but its great bulk gave it +a most formidable appearance. My experience of Caspakian life led me +to believe that the gigantic creature would but have to see us to +attack us, and so I raised my rifle and at the same time drew away +toward some brush which offered concealment; but Ajor only laughed, and +picking up a stick, ran toward the great thing, shouting. The little +head was raised high upon the long neck as the animal stupidly looked +here and there in search of the author of the disturbance. At last its +eyes discovered tiny little Ajor, and then she hurled the stick at the +diminutive head. With a cry that sounded not unlike the bleat of a +sheep, the colossal creature shuffled into the water and was soon +submerged. + +As I slowly recalled my collegiate studies and paleontological readings +in Bowen's textbooks, I realized that I had looked upon nothing less +than a diplodocus of the Upper Jurassic; but how infinitely different +was the true, live thing from the crude restorations of Hatcher and +Holland! I had had the idea that the diplodocus was a land-animal, but +evidently it is partially amphibious. I have seen several since my +first encounter, and in each case the creature took to the sea for +concealment as soon as it was disturbed. With the exception of its +gigantic tail, it has no weapon of defense; but with this appendage it +can lash so terrific a blow as to lay low even a giant cave-bear, +stunned and broken. It is a stupid, simple, gentle beast--one of the +few within Caspak which such a description might even remotely fit. + +For three nights we slept in trees, finding no caves or other places of +concealment. Here we were free from the attacks of the large land +carnivora; but the smaller flying reptiles, the snakes, leopards, and +panthers were a constant menace, though by no means as much to be +feared as the huge beasts that roamed the surface of the earth. + +At the close of the third day Ajor and I were able to converse with +considerable fluency, and it was a great relief to both of us, +especially to Ajor. She now did nothing but ask questions whenever I +would let her, which could not be all the time, as our preservation +depended largely upon the rapidity with which I could gain knowledge of +the geography and customs of Caspak, and accordingly I had to ask +numerous questions myself. + +I enjoyed immensely hearing and answering her, so naive were many of +her queries and so filled with wonder was she at the things I told her +of the world beyond the lofty barriers of Caspak; not once did she seem +to doubt me, however marvelous my statements must have seemed; and +doubtless they were the cause of marvel to Ajor, who before had never +dreamed that any life existed beyond Caspak and the life she knew. + +Artless though many of her questions were, they evidenced a keen +intellect and a shrewdness which seemed far beyond her years or her +experience. Altogether I was finding my little savage a mighty +interesting and companionable person, and I often thanked the kind fate +that directed the crossing of our paths. From her I learned much of +Caspak, but there still remained the mystery that had proved so +baffling to Bowen Tyler--the total absence of young among the ape, the +semihuman and the human races with which both he and I had come in +contact upon opposite shores of the inland sea. Ajor tried to explain +the matter to me, though it was apparent that she could not conceive +how so natural a condition should demand explanation. She told me that +among the Galus there were a few babies, that she had once been a baby +but that most of her people "came up," as he put it, "_cor sva jo_," or +literally, "from the beginning"; and as they all did when they used +that phrase, she would wave a broad gesture toward the south. + +"For long," she explained, leaning very close to me and whispering the +words into my ear while she cast apprehensive glances about and mostly +skyward, "for long my mother kept me hidden lest the Wieroo, passing +through the air by night, should come and take me away to Oo-oh." And +the child shuddered as she voiced the word. I tried to get her to tell +me more; but her terror was so real when she spoke of the Wieroo and +the land of Oo-oh where they dwell that I at last desisted, though I +did learn that the Wieroo carried off only female babes and +occasionally women of the Galus who had "come up from the beginning." +It was all very mysterious and unfathomable, but I got the idea that +the Wieroo were creatures of imagination--the demons or gods of her +race, omniscient and omnipresent. This led me to assume that the Galus +had a religious sense, and further questioning brought out the fact +that such was the case. Ajor spoke in tones of reverence of Luata, the +god of heat and life. The word is derived from two others: _Lua_, +meaning sun, and _ata_, meaning variously _eggs_, _life_, _young_, and +_reproduction_. She told me that they worshiped Luata in several forms, +as fire, the sun, eggs and other material objects which suggested heat +and reproduction. + +I had noticed that whenever I built a fire, Ajor outlined in the air +before her with a forefinger an isosceles triangle, and that she did +the same in the morning when she first viewed the sun. At first I had +not connected her act with anything in particular, but after we learned +to converse and she had explained a little of her religious +superstitions, I realized that she was making the sign of the triangle +as a Roman Catholic makes the sign of the cross. Always the short side +of the triangle was uppermost. As she explained all this to me, she +pointed to the decorations on her golden armlets, upon the knob of her +dagger-hilt and upon the band which encircled her right leg above the +knee--always was the design partly made up of isosceles triangles, and +when she explained the significance of this particular geometric +figure, I at once grasped its appropriateness. + +We were now in the country of the Band-lu, the spearmen of Caspak. +Bowen had remarked in his narrative that these people were analogous to +the so-called Cro-Magnon race of the Upper Paleolithic, and I was +therefore very anxious to see them. Nor was I to be disappointed; I +saw them, all right! We had left the Sto-lu country and literally +fought our way through cordons of wild beasts for two days when we +decided to make camp a little earlier than usual, owing to the fact +that we had reached a line of cliffs running east and west in which +were numerous likely cave-lodgings. We were both very tired, and the +sight of these caverns, several of which could be easily barricaded, +decided us to halt until the following morning. It took but a few +minutes' exploration to discover one particular cavern high up the face +of the cliff which seemed ideal for our purpose. It opened upon a +narrow ledge where we could build our cook-fire; the opening was so +small that we had to lie flat and wriggle through it to gain ingress, +while the interior was high-ceiled and spacious. I lighted a faggot +and looked about; but as far as I could see, the chamber ran back into +the cliff. + +Laying aside my rifle, pistol and heavy ammunition-belt, I left Ajor in +the cave while I went down to gather firewood. We already had meat and +fruits which we had gathered just before reaching the cliffs, and my +canteen was filled with fresh water. Therefore, all we required was +fuel, and as I always saved Ajor's strength when I could, I would not +permit her to accompany me. The poor girl was very tired; but she +would have gone with me until she dropped, I know, so loyal was she. +She was the best comrade in the world, and sometimes I regretted and +sometimes I was glad that she was not of my own caste, for had she +been, I should unquestionably have fallen in love with her. As it was, +we traveled together like two boys, with huge respect for each other +but no softer sentiment. + +There was little timber close to the base of the cliffs, and so I was +forced to enter the wood some two hundred yards distant. I realize now +how foolhardy was my act in such a land as Caspak, teeming with danger +and with death; but there is a certain amount of fool in every man; and +whatever proportion of it I own must have been in the ascendant that +day, for the truth of the matter is that I went down into those woods +absolutely defenseless; and I paid the price, as people usually do for +their indiscretions. As I searched around in the brush for likely +pieces of firewood, my head bowed and my eyes upon the ground, I +suddenly felt a great weight hurl itself upon me. I struggled to my +knees and seized my assailant, a huge, naked man--naked except for a +breechcloth of snakeskin, the head hanging down to the knees. The +fellow was armed with a stone-shod spear, a stone knife and a hatchet. +In his black hair were several gay-colored feathers. As we struggled +to and fro, I was slowly gaining advantage of him, when a score of his +fellows came running up and overpowered me. + +They bound my hands behind me with long rawhide thongs and then +surveyed me critically. I found them fine-looking specimens of +manhood, for the most part. There were some among them who bore a +resemblance to the Sto-lu and were hairy; but the majority had massive +heads and not unlovely features. There was little about them to +suggest the ape, as in the Sto-lu, Bo-lu and Alus. I expected them to +kill me at once, but they did not. Instead they questioned me; but it +was evident that they did not believe my story, for they scoffed and +laughed. + +"The Galus have turned you out," they cried. "If you go back to them, +you will die. If you remain here, you will die. We shall kill you; +but first we shall have a dance and you shall dance with us--the dance +of death." + +It sounded quite reassuring! But I knew that I was not to be killed +immediately, and so I took heart. They led me toward the cliffs, and +as we approached them, I glanced up and was sure that I saw Ajor's +bright eyes peering down upon us from our lofty cave; but she gave no +sign if she saw me; and we passed on, rounded the end of the cliffs and +proceeded along the opposite face of them until we came to a section +literally honeycombed with caves. All about, upon the ground and +swarming the ledges before the entrances, were hundreds of members of +the tribe. There were many women but no babes or children, though I +noticed that the females had better developed breasts than any that I +had seen among the hatchet-men, the club-men, the Alus or the apes. In +fact, among the lower orders of Caspakian man the female breast is but +a rudimentary organ, barely suggested in the apes and Alus, and only a +little more defined in the Bo-lu and Sto-lu, though always increasingly +so until it is found about half developed in the females of the +spear-men; yet never was there an indication that the females had +suckled young; nor were there any young among them. Some of the +Band-lu women were quite comely. The figures of all, both men and +women, were symmetrical though heavy, and though there were some who +verged strongly upon the Sto-lu type, there were others who were +positively handsome and whose bodies were quite hairless. The Alus are +all bearded, but among the Bo-lu the beard disappears in the women. +The Sto-lu men show a sparse beard, the Band-lu none; and there is +little hair upon the bodies of their women. + +The members of the tribe showed great interest in me, especially in my +clothing, the like of which, of course, they never had seen. They +pulled and hauled upon me, and some of them struck me; but for the most +part they were not inclined to brutality. It was only the hairier +ones, who most closely resembled the Sto-lu, who maltreated me. At +last my captors led me into a great cave in the mouth of which a fire +was burning. The floor was littered with filth, including the bones of +many animals, and the atmosphere reeked with the stench of human bodies +and putrefying flesh. Here they fed me, releasing my arms, and I ate +of half-cooked aurochs steak and a stew which may have been made of +snakes, for many of the long, round pieces of meat suggested them most +nauseatingly. + +The meal completed, they led me well within the cavern, which they +lighted with torches stuck in various crevices in the light of which I +saw, to my astonishment, that the walls were covered with paintings and +etchings. There were aurochs, red deer, saber-tooth tiger, cave-bear, +hyaenadon and many other examples of the fauna of Caspak done in +colors, usually of four shades of brown, or scratched upon the surface +of the rock. Often they were super-imposed upon each other until it +required careful examination to trace out the various outlines. But +they all showed a rather remarkable aptitude for delineation which +further fortified Bowen's comparisons between these people and the +extinct Cro-Magnons whose ancient art is still preserved in the caverns +of Niaux and Le Portel. The Band-lu, however, did not have the bow and +arrow, and in this respect they differ from their extinct progenitors, +or descendants, of Western Europe. + +Should any of my friends chance to read the story of my adventures upon +Caprona, I hope they will not be bored by these diversions, and if they +are, I can only say that I am writing my memoirs for my own edification +and therefore setting down those things which interested me +particularly at the time. I have no desire that the general public +should ever have access to these pages; but it is possible that my +friends may, and also certain savants who are interested; and to them, +while I do not apologize for my philosophizing, I humbly explain that +they are witnessing the gropings of a finite mind after the infinite, +the search for explanations of the inexplicable. + +In a far recess of the cavern my captors bade me halt. Again my hands +were secured, and this time my feet as well. During the operation they +questioned me, and I was mighty glad that the marked similarity between +the various tribal tongues of Caspak enabled us to understand each +other perfectly, even though they were unable to believe or even to +comprehend the truth of my origin and the circumstances of my advent in +Caspak; and finally they left me saying that they would come for me +before the dance of death upon the morrow. Before they departed with +their torches, I saw that I had not been conducted to the farthest +extremity of the cavern, for a dark and gloomy corridor led beyond my +prison room into the heart of the cliff. + +I could not but marvel at the immensity of this great underground +grotto. Already I had traversed several hundred yards of it, from many +points of which other corridors diverged. The whole cliff must be +honeycombed with apartments and passages of which this community +occupied but a comparatively small part, so that the possibility of the +more remote passages being the lair of savage beasts that have other +means of ingress and egress than that used by the Band-lu filled me +with dire forebodings. + +I believe that I am not ordinarily hysterically apprehensive; yet I +must confess that under the conditions with which I was confronted, I +felt my nerves to be somewhat shaken. On the morrow I was to die some +sort of nameless death for the diversion of a savage horde, but the +morrow held fewer terrors for me than the present, and I submit to any +fair-minded man if it is not a terrifying thing to lie bound hand and +foot in the Stygian blackness of an immense cave peopled by unknown +dangers in a land overrun by hideous beasts and reptiles of the +greatest ferocity. At any moment, perhaps at this very moment, some +silent-footed beast of prey might catch my scent where it laired in +some contiguous passage, and might creep stealthily upon me. I craned +my neck about, and stared through the inky darkness for the twin spots +of blazing hate which I knew would herald the coming of my executioner. +So real were the imaginings of my overwrought brain that I broke into a +cold sweat in absolute conviction that some beast was close before me; +yet the hours dragged, and no sound broke the grave-like stillness of +the cavern. + +During that period of eternity many events of my life passed before my +mental vision, a vast parade of friends and occurrences which would be +blotted out forever on the morrow. I cursed myself for the foolish act +which had taken me from the search-party that so depended upon me, and +I wondered what progress, if any, they had made. Were they still +beyond the barrier cliffs, awaiting my return? Or had they found a way +into Caspak? I felt that the latter would be the truth, for the party +was not made up of men easily turned from a purpose. Quite probable it +was that they were already searching for me; but that they would ever +find a trace of me I doubted. Long since, had I come to the conclusion +that it was beyond human prowess to circle the shores of the inland sea +of Caspak in the face of the myriad menaces which lurked in every +shadow by day and by night. Long since, had I given up any hope of +reaching the point where I had made my entry into the country, and so I +was now equally convinced that our entire expedition had been worse +than futile before ever it was conceived, since Bowen J. Tyler and his +wife could not by any possibility have survived during all these long +months; no more could Bradley and his party of seamen be yet in +existence. If the superior force and equipment of my party enabled +them to circle the north end of the sea, they might some day come upon +the broken wreck of my plane hanging in the great tree to the south; +but long before that, my bones would be added to the litter upon the +floor of this mighty cavern. + +And through all my thoughts, real and fanciful, moved the image of a +perfect girl, clear-eyed and strong and straight and beautiful, with +the carriage of a queen and the supple, undulating grace of a leopard. +Though I loved my friends, their fate seemed of less importance to me +than the fate of this little barbarian stranger for whom, I had +convinced myself many a time, I felt no greater sentiment than passing +friendship for a fellow-wayfarer in this land of horrors. Yet I so +worried and fretted about her and her future that at last I quite +forgot my own predicament, though I still struggled intermittently with +my bonds in vain endeavor to free myself; as much, however, that I might +hasten to her protection as that I might escape the fate which had been +planned for me. And while I was thus engaged and had for the moment +forgotten my apprehensions concerning prowling beasts, I was startled +into tense silence by a distinct and unmistakable sound coming from the +dark corridor farther toward the heart of the cliff--the sound of +padded feet moving stealthily in my direction. + +I believe that never before in all my life, even amidst the terrors of +childhood nights, have I suffered such a sensation of extreme horror as +I did that moment in which I realized that I must lie bound and +helpless while some horrid beast of prey crept upon me to devour me in +that utter darkness of the Band-lu pits of Caspak. I reeked with cold +sweat, and my flesh crawled--I could feel it crawl. If ever I came +nearer to abject cowardice, I do not recall the instance; and yet it +was not that I was afraid to die, for I had long since given myself up +as lost--a few days of Caspak must impress anyone with the utter +nothingness of life. The waters, the land, the air teem with it, and +always it is being devoured by some other form of life. Life is the +cheapest thing in Caspak, as it is the cheapest thing on earth and, +doubtless, the cheapest cosmic production. No, I was not afraid to +die; in fact, I prayed for death, that I might be relieved of the +frightfulness of the interval of life which remained to me--the +waiting, the awful waiting, for that fearsome beast to reach me and to +strike. + +Presently it was so close that I could hear its breathing, and then it +touched me and leaped quickly back as though it had come upon me +unexpectedly. For long moments no sound broke the sepulchral silence +of the cave. Then I heard a movement on the part of the creature near +me, and again it touched me, and I felt something like a hairless hand +pass over my face and down until it touched the collar of my flannel +shirt. And then, subdued, but filled with pent emotion, a voice cried: +"Tom!" + +I think I nearly fainted, so great was the reaction. "Ajor!" I +managed to say. "Ajor, my girl, can it be you?" + +"Oh, Tom!" she cried again in a trembly little voice and flung herself +upon me, sobbing softly. I had not known that Ajor could cry. + +As she cut away my bonds, she told me that from the entrance to our +cave she had seen the Band-lu coming out of the forest with me, and she +had followed until they took me into the cave, which she had seen was +upon the opposite side of the cliff in which ours was located; and +then, knowing that she could do nothing for me until after the Band-lu +slept, she had hastened to return to our cave. With difficulty she had +reached it, after having been stalked by a cave-lion and almost seized. +I trembled at the risk she had run. + +It had been her intention to wait until after midnight, when most of +the carnivora would have made their kills, and then attempt to reach +the cave in which I was imprisoned and rescue me. She explained that +with my rifle and pistol--both of which she assured me she could use, +having watched me so many times--she planned upon frightening the +Band-lu and forcing them to give me up. Brave little girl! She would +have risked her life willingly to save me. But some time after she +reached our cave she heard voices from the far recesses within, and +immediately concluded that we had but found another entrance to the +caves which the Band-lu occupied upon the other face of the cliff. +Then she had set out through those winding passages and in total +darkness had groped her way, guided solely by a marvelous sense of +direction, to where I lay. She had had to proceed with utmost caution +lest she fall into some abyss in the darkness and in truth she had +thrice come upon sheer drops and had been forced to take the most +frightful risks to pass them. I shudder even now as I contemplate what +this girl passed through for my sake and how she enhanced her peril in +loading herself down with the weight of my arms and ammunition and the +awkwardness of the long rifle which she was unaccustomed to bearing. + +I could have knelt and kissed her hand in reverence and gratitude; nor +am I ashamed to say that that is precisely what I did after I had been +freed from my bonds and heard the story of her trials. Brave little +Ajor! Wonder-girl out of the dim, unthinkable past! Never before had +she been kissed; but she seemed to sense something of the meaning of +the new caress, for she leaned forward in the dark and pressed her own +lips to my forehead. A sudden urge surged through me to seize her and +strain her to my bosom and cover her hot young lips with the kisses of +a real love, but I did not do so, for I knew that I did not love her; +and to have kissed her thus, with passion, would have been to inflict a +great wrong upon her who had offered her life for mine. + +No, Ajor should be as safe with me as with her own mother, if she had +one, which I was inclined to doubt, even though she told me that she +had once been a babe and hidden by her mother. I had come to doubt if +there was such a thing as a mother in Caspak, a mother such as we know. +From the Bo-lu to the Kro-lu there is no word which corresponds with +our word mother. They speak of _ata_ and _cor sva jo:, meaning +_reproduction_ and _from the beginning_, and point toward the south; but no +one has a mother. + +After considerable difficulty we gained what we thought was our cave, +only to find that it was not, and then we realized that we were lost in +the labyrinthine mazes of the great cavern. We retraced our steps and +sought the point from which we had started, but only succeeded in +losing ourselves the more. Ajor was aghast--not so much from fear of +our predicament; but that she should have failed in the functioning of +that wonderful sense she possessed in common with most other creatures +Caspakian, which makes it possible for them to move unerringly from +place to place without compass or guide. + +Hand in hand we crept along, searching for an opening into the outer +world, yet realizing that at each step we might be burrowing more +deeply into the heart of the great cliff, or circling futilely in the +vague wandering that could end only in death. And the darkness! It +was almost palpable, and utterly depressing. I had matches, and in +some of the more difficult places I struck one; but we couldn't afford +to waste them, and so we groped our way slowly along, doing the best we +could to keep to one general direction in the hope that it would +eventually lead us to an opening into the outer world. When I struck +matches, I noticed that the walls bore no paintings; nor was there +other sign that man had penetrated this far within the cliff, nor any +spoor of animals of other kinds. + +It would be difficult to guess at the time we spent wandering through +those black corridors, climbing steep ascents, feeling our way along +the edges of bottomless pits, never knowing at what moment we might be +plunged into some abyss and always haunted by the ever-present terror +of death by starvation and thirst. As difficult as it was, I still +realized that it might have been infinitely worse had I had another +companion than Ajor--courageous, uncomplaining, loyal little Ajor! She +was tired and hungry and thirsty, and she must have been discouraged; +but she never faltered in her cheerfulness. I asked her if she was +afraid, and she replied that here the Wieroo could not get her, and +that if she died of hunger, she would at least die with me and she was +quite content that such should be her end. At the time I attributed +her attitude to something akin to a doglike devotion to a new master +who had been kind to her. I can take oath to the fact that I did not +think it was anything more. + +Whether we had been imprisoned in the cliff for a day or a week I could +not say; nor even now do I know. We became very tired and hungry; the +hours dragged; we slept at least twice, and then we rose and stumbled +on, always weaker and weaker. There were ages during which the trend +of the corridors was always upward. It was heartbreaking work for +people in the state of exhaustion in which we then were, but we clung +tenaciously to it. We stumbled and fell; we sank through pure physical +inability to retain our feet; but always we managed to rise at last and +go on. At first, wherever it had been possible, we had walked hand in +hand lest we become separated, and later, when I saw that Ajor was +weakening rapidly, we went side by side, I supporting her with an arm +about her waist. I still retained the heavy burden of my armament; but +with the rifle slung to my back, my hands were free. When I too showed +indisputable evidences of exhaustion, Ajor suggested that I lay aside +my arms and ammunition; but I told her that as it would mean certain +death for me to traverse Caspak without them, I might as well take the +chance of dying here in the cave with them, for there was the other +chance that we might find our way to liberty. + +There came a time when Ajor could no longer walk, and then it was that +I picked her up in my arms and carried her. She begged me to leave +her, saying that after I found an exit, I could come back and get her; +but she knew, and she knew that I knew, that if ever I did leave her, I +could never find her again. Yet she insisted. Barely had I sufficient +strength to take a score of steps at a time; then I would have to sink +down and rest for five to ten minutes. I don't know what force urged +me on and kept me going in the face of an absolute conviction that my +efforts were utterly futile. I counted us already as good as dead; but +still I dragged myself along until the time came that I could no longer +rise, but could only crawl along a few inches at a time, dragging Ajor +beside me. Her sweet voice, now almost inaudible from weakness, +implored me to abandon her and save myself--she seemed to think only of +me. Of course I couldn't have left her there alone, no matter how much +I might have desired to do so; but the fact of the matter was that I +didn't desire to leave her. What I said to her then came very simply +and naturally to my lips. It couldn't very well have been otherwise, I +imagine, for with death so close, I doubt if people are much inclined +to heroics. "I would rather not get out at all, Ajor," I said to her, +"than to get out without you." We were resting against a rocky wall, +and Ajor was leaning against me, her head on my breast. I could feel +her press closer to me, and one hand stroked my arm in a weak caress; +but she didn't say anything, nor were words necessary. + +After a few minutes' more rest, we started on again upon our utterly +hopeless way; but I soon realized that I was weakening rapidly, and +presently I was forced to admit that I was through. "It's no use, +Ajor," I said, "I've come as far as I can. It may be that if I sleep, +I can go on again after," but I knew that that was not true, and that +the end was near. "Yes, sleep," said Ajor. "We will sleep +together--forever." + +She crept close to me as I lay on the hard floor and pillowed her head +upon my arm. With the little strength which remained to me, I drew her +up until our lips touched, and, then I whispered: "Good-bye!" I must +have lost consciousness almost immediately, for I recall nothing more +until I suddenly awoke out of a troubled sleep, during which I dreamed +that I was drowning, to find the cave lighted by what appeared to be +diffused daylight, and a tiny trickle of water running down the +corridor and forming a puddle in the little depression in which it +chanced that Ajor and I lay. I turned my eyes quickly upon Ajor, +fearful for what the light might disclose; but she still breathed, +though very faintly. Then I searched about for an explanation of the +light, and soon discovered that it came from about a bend in the +corridor just ahead of us and at the top of a steep incline; and +instantly I realized that Ajor and I had stumbled by night almost to +the portal of salvation. Had chance taken us a few yards further, up +either of the corridors which diverged from ours just ahead of us, we +might have been irrevocably lost; we might still be lost; but at least +we could die in the light of day, out of the horrid blackness of this +terrible cave. + +I tried to rise, and found that sleep had given me back a portion of my +strength; and then I tasted the water and was further refreshed. I +shook Ajor gently by the shoulder; but she did not open her eyes, and +then I gathered a few drops of water in my cupped palm and let them +trickle between her lips. This revived her so that she raised her +lids, and when she saw me, she smiled. + +"What happened?" she asked. "Where are we?" + +"We are at the end of the corridor," I replied, "and daylight is coming +in from the outside world just ahead. We are saved, Ajor!" + +She sat up then and looked about, and then, quite womanlike, she burst +into tears. It was the reaction, of course; and then too, she was very +weak. I took her in my arms and quieted her as best I could, and +finally, with my help, she got to her feet; for she, as well as I, had +found some slight recuperation in sleep. Together we staggered upward +toward the light, and at the first turn we saw an opening a few yards +ahead of us and a leaden sky beyond--a leaden sky from which was +falling a drizzling rain, the author of our little, trickling stream +which had given us drink when we were most in need of it. + +The cave had been damp and cold; but as we crawled through the +aperture, the muggy warmth of the Caspakian air caressed and confronted +us; even the rain was warmer than the atmosphere of those dark +corridors. We had water now, and warmth, and I was sure that Caspak +would soon offer us meat or fruit; but as we came to where we could +look about, we saw that we were upon the summit of the cliffs, where +there seemed little reason to expect game. However, there were trees, +and among them we soon descried edible fruits with which we broke our +long fast. + + + +Chapter 4 + +We spent two days upon the cliff-top, resting and recuperating. There +was some small game which gave us meat, and the little pools of +rainwater were sufficient to quench our thirst. The sun came out a few +hours after we emerged from the cave, and in its warmth we soon cast +off the gloom which our recent experiences had saddled upon us. + +Upon the morning of the third day we set out to search for a path down +to the valley. Below us, to the north, we saw a large pool lying at +the foot of the cliffs, and in it we could discern the women of the +Band-lu lying in the shallow waters, while beyond and close to the base +of the mighty barrier-cliffs there was a large party of Band-lu +warriors going north to hunt. We had a splendid view from our lofty +cliff-top. Dimly, to the west, we could see the farther shore of the +inland sea, and southwest the large southern island loomed distinctly +before us. A little east of north was the northern island, which Ajor, +shuddering, whispered was the home of the Wieroo--the land of Oo-oh. +It lay at the far end of the lake and was barely visible to us, being +fully sixty miles away. + +From our elevation, and in a clearer atmosphere, it would have stood +out distinctly; but the air of Caspak is heavy with moisture, with the +result that distant objects are blurred and indistinct. Ajor also told +me that the mainland east of Oo-oh was her land--the land of the Galu. +She pointed out the cliffs at its southern boundary, which mark the +frontier, south of which lies the country of Kro-lu--the archers. We +now had but to pass through the balance of the Band-lu territory and +that of the Kro-lu to be within the confines of her own land; but that +meant traversing thirty-five miles of hostile country filled with every +imaginable terror, and possibly many beyond the powers of imagination. +I would certainly have given a lot for my plane at that moment, for +with it, twenty minutes would have landed us within the confines of +Ajor's country. + +We finally found a place where we could slip over the edge of the cliff +onto a narrow ledge which seemed to give evidence of being something of +a game-path to the valley, though it apparently had not been used for +some time. I lowered Ajor at the end of my rifle and then slid over +myself, and I am free to admit that my hair stood on end during the +process, for the drop was considerable and the ledge appallingly +narrow, with a frightful drop sheer below down to the rocks at the base +of the cliff; but with Ajor there to catch and steady me, I made it all +right, and then we set off down the trail toward the valley. There +were two or three more bad places, but for the most part it was an easy +descent, and we came to the highest of the Band-lu caves without +further trouble. Here we went more slowly, lest we should be set upon +by some member of the tribe. + +We must have passed about half the Band-lu cave-levels before we were +accosted, and then a huge fellow stepped out in front of me, barring +our further progress. + +"Who are you?" he asked; and he recognized me and I him, for he had +been one of those who had led me back into the cave and bound me the +night that I had been captured. From me his gaze went to Ajor. He was +a fine-looking man with clear, intelligent eyes, a good forehead and +superb physique--by far the highest type of Caspakian I had yet seen, +barring Ajor, of course. + +"You are a true Galu," he said to Ajor, "but this man is of a different +mold. He has the face of a Galu, but his weapons and the strange skins +he wears upon his body are not of the Galus nor of Caspak. Who is he?" + +"He is Tom," replied Ajor succinctly. + +"There is no such people," asserted the Band-lu quite truthfully, +toying with his spear in a most suggestive manner. + +"My name is Tom," I explained, "and I am from a country beyond Caspak." +I thought it best to propitiate him if possible, because of the +necessity of conserving ammunition as well as to avoid the loud alarm +of a shot which might bring other Band-lu warriors upon us. "I am from +America, a land of which you never heard, and I am seeking others of my +countrymen who are in Caspak and from whom I am lost. I have no quarrel +with you or your people. Let us go our way in peace." + +"You are going there?" he asked, and pointed toward the north. + +"I am," I replied. + +He was silent for several minutes, apparently weighing some thought in +his mind. At last he spoke. "What is that?" he asked. "And what is +that?" He pointed first at my rifle and then to my pistol. + +"They are weapons," I replied, "weapons which kill at a great +distance." I pointed to the women in the pool beneath us. "With this," +I said, tapping my pistol, "I could kill as many of those women as I +cared to, without moving a step from where we now stand." + +He looked his incredulity, but I went on. "And with this"--I weighed +my rifle at the balance in the palm of my right hand--"I could slay one +of those distant warriors." And I waved my left hand toward the tiny +figures of the hunters far to the north. + +The fellow laughed. "Do it," he cried derisively, "and then it may be +that I shall believe the balance of your strange story." + +"But I do not wish to kill any of them," I replied. "Why should I?" + +"Why not?" he insisted. "They would have killed you when they had you +prisoner. They would kill you now if they could get their hands on +you, and they would eat you into the bargain. But I know why you do +not try it--it is because you have spoken lies; your weapon will not +kill at a great distance. It is only a queerly wrought club. For all +I know, you are nothing more than a lowly Bo-lu." + +"Why should you wish me to kill your own people?" I asked. + +"They are no longer my people," he replied proudly. "Last night, in +the very middle of the night, the call came to me. Like that it came +into my head"--and he struck his hands together smartly once--"that I +had risen. I have been waiting for it and expecting it for a long +time; today I am a Kro-lu. Today I go into the coslupak" (unpeopled +country, or literally, no man's land) "between the Band-lu and the +Kro-lu, and there I fashion my bow and my arrows and my shield; there I +hunt the red deer for the leathern jerkin which is the badge of my new +estate. When these things are done, I can go to the chief of the +Kro-lu, and he dare not refuse me. That is why you may kill those low +Band-lu if you wish to live, for I am in a hurry. + +"But why do you wish to kill me?" I asked. + +He looked puzzled and finally gave it up. "I do not know," he +admitted. "It is the way in Caspak. If we do not kill, we shall be +killed, therefore it is wise to kill first whomever does not belong to +one's own people. This morning I hid in my cave till the others were +gone upon the hunt, for I knew that they would know at once that I had +become a Kro-lu and would kill me. They will kill me if they find me +in the coslupak; so will the Kro-lu if they come upon me before I have +won my Kro-lu weapons and jerkin. You would kill me if you could, and +that is the reason I know that you speak lies when you say that your +weapons will kill at a great distance. Would they, you would long +since have killed me. Come! I have no more time to waste in words. I +will spare the woman and take her with me to the Kro-lu, for she is +comely." And with that he advanced upon me with raised spear. + +My rifle was at my hip at the ready. He was so close that I did not +need to raise it to my shoulder, having but to pull the trigger to send +him into Kingdom Come whenever I chose; but yet I hesitated. It was +difficult to bring myself to take a human life. I could feel no enmity +toward this savage barbarian who acted almost as wholly upon instinct +as might a wild beast, and to the last moment I was determined to seek +some way to avoid what now seemed inevitable. Ajor stood at my +shoulder, her knife ready in her hand and a sneer on her lips at his +suggestion that he would take her with him. + +Just as I thought I should have to fire, a chorus of screams broke from +the women beneath us. I saw the man halt and glance downward, and +following his example my eyes took in the panic and its cause. The +women had, evidently, been quitting the pool and slowly returning +toward the caves, when they were confronted by a monstrous cave-lion +which stood directly between them and their cliffs in the center of the +narrow path that led down to the pool among the tumbled rocks. +Screaming, the women were rushing madly back to the pool. + +"It will do them no good," remarked the man, a trace of excitement in +his voice. "It will do them no good, for the lion will wait until they +come out and take as many as he can carry away; and there is one +there," he added, a trace of sadness in his tone, "whom I hoped would +soon follow me to the Kro-lu. Together have we come up from the +beginning." He raised his spear above his head and poised it ready to +hurl downward at the lion. "She is nearest to him," he muttered. "He +will get her and she will never come to me among the Kro-lu, or ever +thereafter. It is useless! No warrior lives who could hurl a weapon +so great a distance." + +But even as he spoke, I was leveling my rifle upon the great brute +below; and as he ceased speaking, I squeezed the trigger. My bullet +must have struck to a hair the point at which I had aimed, for it +smashed the brute's spine back of his shoulders and tore on through his +heart, dropping him dead in his tracks. For a moment the women were as +terrified by the report of the rifle as they had been by the menace of +the lion; but when they saw that the loud noise had evidently destroyed +their enemy, they came creeping cautiously back to examine the carcass. + +The man, toward whom I had immediately turned after firing, lest he +should pursue his threatened attack, stood staring at me in amazement +and admiration. + +"Why," he asked, "if you could do that, did you not kill me long +before?" + +"I told you," I replied, "that I had no quarrel with you. I do not +care to kill men with whom I have no quarrel." + +But he could not seem to get the idea through his head. "I can believe +now that you are not of Caspak," he admitted, "for no Caspakian would +have permitted such an opportunity to escape him." This, however, I +found later to be an exaggeration, as the tribes of the west coast and +even the Kro-lu of the east coast are far less bloodthirsty than he +would have had me believe. "And your weapon!" he continued. "You +spoke true words when I thought you spoke lies." And then, suddenly: +"Let us be friends!" + +I turned to Ajor. "Can I trust him?" I asked. + +"Yes," she replied. "Why not? Has he not asked to be friends?" + +I was not at the time well enough acquainted with Caspakian ways to +know that truthfulness and loyalty are two of the strongest +characteristics of these primitive people. They are not sufficiently +cultured to have become adept in hypocrisy, treason and dissimulation. +There are, of course, a few exceptions. + +"We can go north together," continued the warrior. "I will fight for +you, and you can fight for me. Until death will I serve you, for you +have saved So-al, whom I had given up as dead." He threw down his +spear and covered both his eyes with the palms of his two hands. I +looked inquiringly toward Ajor, who explained as best she could that +this was the form of the Caspakian oath of allegiance. "You need never +fear him after this," she concluded. + +"What should I do?" I asked. + +"Take his hands down from before his eyes and return his spear to him," +she explained. + +I did as she bade, and the man seemed very pleased. I then asked what +I should have done had I not wished to accept his friendship. They +told me that had I walked away, the moment that I was out of sight of +the warrior we would have become deadly enemies again. "But I could so +easily have killed him as he stood there defenseless!" I exclaimed. + +"Yes," replied the warrior, "but no man with good sense blinds his eyes +before one whom he does not trust." + +It was rather a decent compliment, and it taught me just how much I +might rely on the loyalty of my new friend. I was glad to have him +with us, for he knew the country and was evidently a fearless warrior. +I wished that I might have recruited a battalion like him. + +As the women were now approaching the cliffs, To-mar the warrior +suggested that we make our way to the valley before they could +intercept us, as they might attempt to detain us and were almost +certain to set upon Ajor. So we hastened down the narrow path, +reaching the foot of the cliffs but a short distance ahead of the +women. They called after us to stop; but we kept on at a rapid walk, +not wishing to have any trouble with them, which could only result in +the death of some of them. + +We had proceeded about a mile when we heard some one behind us calling +To-mar by name, and when we stopped and looked around, we saw a woman +running rapidly toward us. As she approached nearer I could see that +she was a very comely creature, and like all her sex that I had seen in +Caspak, apparently young. + +"It is So-al!" exclaimed To-mar. "Is she mad that she follows me thus?" + +In another moment the young woman stopped, panting, before us. She +paid not the slightest attention to Ajor or me; but devouring To-mar +with her sparkling eyes, she cried: "I have risen! I have risen!" + +"So-al!" was all that the man could say. + +"Yes," she went on, "the call came to me just before I quit the pool; +but I did not know that it had come to you. I can see it in your eyes, +To-mar, my To-mar! We shall go on together!" And she threw herself +into his arms. + +It was a very affecting sight, for it was evident that these two had +been mates for a long time and that they had each thought that they +were about to be separated by that strange law of evolution which holds +good in Caspak and which was slowly unfolding before my incredulous +mind. I did not then comprehend even a tithe of the wondrous process, +which goes on eternally within the confines of Caprona's barrier cliffs +nor am I any too sure that I do even now. + +To-mar explained to So-al that it was I who had killed the cave-lion +and saved her life, and that Ajor was my woman and thus entitled to the +same loyalty which was my due. + +At first Ajor and So-al were like a couple of stranger cats on a back +fence but soon they began to accept each other under something of an +armed truce, and later became fast friends. So-al was a mighty +fine-looking girl, built like a tigress as to strength and sinuosity, +but withal sweet and womanly. Ajor and I came to be very fond of her, +and she was, I think, equally fond of us. To-mar was very much of a +man--a savage, if you will, but none the less a man. + +Finding that traveling in company with To-mar made our journey both +easier and safer, Ajor and I did not continue on our way alone while +the novitiates delayed their approach to the Kro-lu country in order +that they might properly fit themselves in the matter of arms and +apparel, but remained with them. Thus we became well acquainted--to +such an extent that we looked forward with regret to the day when they +took their places among their new comrades and we should be forced to +continue upon our way alone. It was a matter of much concern to To-mar +that the Kro-lu would undoubtedly not receive Ajor and me in a friendly +manner, and that consequently we should have to avoid these people. + +It would have been very helpful to us could we have made friends with +them, as their country abutted directly upon that of the Galus. Their +friendship would have meant that Ajor's dangers were practically +passed, and that I had accomplished fully one-half of my long journey. +In view of what I had passed through, I often wondered what chance I +had to complete that journey in search of my friends. The further +south I should travel on the west side of the island, the more +frightful would the dangers become as I neared the stamping-grounds of +the more hideous reptilia and the haunts of the Alus and the Ho-lu, all +of which were at the southern half of the island; and then if I should +not find the members of my party, what was to become of me? I could +not live for long in any portion of Caspak with which I was familiar; +the moment my ammunition was exhausted, I should be as good as dead. + +There was a chance that the Galus would receive me; but even Ajor could +not say definitely whether they would or not, and even provided that +they would, could I retrace my steps from the beginning, after failing +to find my own people, and return to the far northern land of Galus? I +doubted it. However, I was learning from Ajor, who was more or less of +a fatalist, a philosophy which was as necessary in Caspak to peace of +mind as is faith to the devout Christian of the outer world. + + + +Chapter 5 + +We were sitting before a little fire inside a safe grotto one night +shortly after we had quit the cliff-dwellings of the Band-lu, when +So-al raised a question which it had never occurred to me to propound +to Ajor. She asked her why she had left her own people and how she had +come so far south as the country of the Alus, where I had found her. + +At first Ajor hesitated to explain; but at last she consented, and for +the first time I heard the complete story of her origin and +experiences. For my benefit she entered into greater detail of +explanation than would have been necessary had I been a native +Caspakian. + +"I am a cos-ata-lo," commenced Ajor, and then she turned toward me. "A +cos-ata-lo, my Tom, is a woman" (lo) "who did not come from an egg and +thus on up from the beginning." (Cor sva jo.) "I was a babe at my +mother's breast. Only among the Galus are such, and then but +infrequently. The Wieroo get most of us; but my mother hid me until I +had attained such size that the Wieroo could not readily distinguish me +from one who had come up from the beginning. I knew both my mother and +my father, as only such as I may. My father is high chief among the +Galus. His name is Jor, and both he and my mother came up from the +beginning; but one of them, probably my mother, had completed the seven +cycles" (approximately seven hundred years), "with the result that +their offspring might be cos-ata-lo, or born as are all the children of +your race, my Tom, as you tell me is the fact. I was therefore apart +from my fellows in that my children would probably be as I, of a higher +state of evolution, and so I was sought by the men of my people; but +none of them appealed to me. I cared for none. The most persistent +was Du-seen, a huge warrior of whom my father stood in considerable +fear, since it was quite possible that Du-seen could wrest from him his +chieftainship of the Galus. He has a large following of the newer +Galus, those most recently come up from the Kro-lu, and as this class +is usually much more powerful numerically than the older Galus, and as +Du-seen's ambition knows no bounds, we have for a long time been +expecting him to find some excuse for a break with Jor the High Chief, +my father. + +"A further complication lay in the fact that Du-seen wanted me, while I +would have none of him, and then came evidence to my father's ears that +he was in league with the Wieroo; a hunter, returning late at night, +came trembling to my father, saying that he had seen Du-seen talking +with a Wieroo in a lonely spot far from the village, and that plainly +he had heard the words: 'If you will help me, I will help you--I will +deliver into your hands all cos-ata-lo among the Galus, now and +hereafter; but for that service you must slay Jor the High Chief and +bring terror and confusion to his followers.' + +"Now, when my father heard this, he was angry; but he was also +afraid--afraid for me, who am cos-ata-lo. He called me to him and told +me what he had heard, pointing out two ways in which we might frustrate +Du-seen. The first was that I go to Du-seen as his mate, after which +he would be loath to give me into the hands of the Wieroo or to further +abide by the wicked compact he had made--a compact which would doom his +own offspring, who would doubtless be as am I, their mother. The +alternative was flight until Du-seen should have been overcome and +punished. I chose the latter and fled toward the south. Beyond the +confines of the Galu country is little danger from the Wieroo, who seek +ordinarily only Galus of the highest orders. There are two excellent +reasons for this: One is that from the beginning of time jealousy has +existed between the Wieroo and the Galus as to which would eventually +dominate the world. It seems generally conceded that that race which +first reaches a point of evolution which permits them to produce young +of their own species and of both sexes must dominate all other +creatures. The Wieroo first began to produce their own kind--after +which evolution from Galu to Wieroo ceased gradually until now it is +unknown; but the Wieroo produce only males--which is why they steal our +female young, and by stealing cos-ata-lo they increase their own +chances of eventually reproducing both sexes and at the same time +lessen ours. Already the Galus produce both male and female; but so +carefully do the Wieroo watch us that few of the males ever grow to +manhood, while even fewer are the females that are not stolen away. It +is indeed a strange condition, for while our greatest enemies hate and +fear us, they dare not exterminate us, knowing that they too would +become extinct but for us. + +"Ah, but could we once get a start, I am sure that when all were true +cos-ata-lo there would have been evolved at last the true dominant race +before which all the world would be forced to bow." + +Ajor always spoke of the world as though nothing existed beyond Caspak. +She could not seem to grasp the truth of my origin or the fact that +there were countless other peoples outside her stern barrier-cliffs. +She apparently felt that I came from an entirely different world. +Where it was and how I came to Caspak from it were matters quite beyond +her with which she refused to trouble her pretty head. + +"Well," she continued, "and so I ran away to hide, intending to pass +the cliffs to the south of Galu and find a retreat in the Kro-lu +country. It would be dangerous, but there seemed no other way. + +"The third night I took refuge in a large cave in the cliffs at the +edge of my own country; upon the following day I would cross over into +the Kro-lu country, where I felt that I should be reasonably safe from +the Wieroo, though menaced by countless other dangers. However, to a +cos-ata-lo any fate is preferable to that of falling into the clutches +of the frightful Wieroo, from whose land none returns. + +"I had been sleeping peacefully for several hours when I was awakened +by a slight noise within the cavern. The moon was shining brightly, +illumining the entrance, against which I saw silhouetted the dread +figure of a Wieroo. There was no escape. The cave was shallow, the +entrance narrow. I lay very still, hoping against hope, that the +creature had but paused here to rest and might soon depart without +discovering me; yet all the while I knew that he came seeking me. + +"I waited, scarce breathing, watching the thing creep stealthily toward +me, its great eyes luminous in the darkness of the cave's interior, and +at last I knew that those eyes were directed upon me, for the Wieroo +can see in the darkness better than even the lion or the tiger. But a +few feet separated us when I sprang to my feet and dashed madly toward +my menacer in a vain effort to dodge past him and reach the outside +world. It was madness of course, for even had I succeeded temporarily, +the Wieroo would have but followed and swooped down upon me from above. +As it was, he reached forth and seized me, and though I struggled, he +overpowered me. In the duel his long, white robe was nearly torn from +him, and he became very angry, so that he trembled and beat his wings +together in his rage. + +"He asked me my name; but I would not answer him, and that angered him +still more. At last he dragged me to the entrance of the cave, lifted +me in his arms, spread his great wings and leaping into the air, +flapped dismally through the night. I saw the moonlit landscape +sliding away beneath me, and then we were out above the sea and on our +way to Oo-oh, the country of the Wieroo. + +"The dim outlines of Oo-oh were unfolding below us when there came from +above a loud whirring of giant wings. The Wieroo and I glanced up +simultaneously, to see a pair of huge jo-oos" (flying +reptiles--pterodactyls) "swooping down upon us. The Wieroo wheeled and +dropped almost to sea-level, and then raced southward in an effort to +outdistance our pursuers. The great creatures, notwithstanding their +enormous weight, are swift on their wings; but the Wieroo are swifter. +Even with my added weight, the creature that bore me maintained his +lead, though he could not increase it. Faster than the fastest wind we +raced through the night, southward along the coast. Sometimes we rose +to great heights, where the air was chill and the world below but a +blur of dim outlines; but always the jo-oos stuck behind us. + +"I knew that we had covered a great distance, for the rush of the wind +by my face attested the speed of our progress, but I had no idea where +we were when at last I realized that the Wieroo was weakening. One of +the jo-oos gained on us and succeeded in heading us, so that my captor +had to turn in toward the coast. Further and further they forced him +to the left; lower and lower he sank. More labored was his breathing, +and weaker the stroke of his once powerful wings. We were not ten feet +above the ground when they overtook us, and at the edge of a forest. +One of them seized the Wieroo by his right wing, and in an effort to +free himself, he loosed his grasp upon me, dropping me to earth. Like +a frightened ecca I leaped to my feet and raced for the sheltering +sanctuary of the forest, where I knew neither could follow or seize me. +Then I turned and looked back to see two great reptiles tear my +abductor asunder and devour him on the spot. + +"I was saved; yet I felt that I was lost. How far I was from the +country of the Galus I could not guess; nor did it seem probable that I +ever could make my way in safety to my native land. + +"Day was breaking; soon the carnivora would stalk forth for their first +kill; I was armed only with my knife. About me was a strange +landscape--the flowers, the trees, the grasses, even, were different +from those of my northern world, and presently there appeared before me +a creature fully as hideous as the Wieroo--a hairy manthing that barely +walked erect. I shuddered, and then I fled. Through the hideous +dangers that my forebears had endured in the earlier stages of their +human evolution I fled; and always pursuing was the hairy monster that +had discovered me. Later he was joined by others of his kind. They +were the speechless men, the Alus, from whom you rescued me, my Tom. +From then on, you know the story of my adventures, and from the first, +I would endure them all again because they led me to you!" + +It was very nice of her to say that, and I appreciated it. I felt that +she was a mighty nice little girl whose friendship anyone might be glad +to have; but I wished that when she touched me, those peculiar thrills +would not run through me. It was most discomforting, because it +reminded me of love; and I knew that I never could love this half-baked +little barbarian. I was very much interested in her account of the +Wieroo, which up to this time I had considered a purely mythological +creature; but Ajor shuddered so at even the veriest mention of the name +that I was loath to press the subject upon her, and so the Wieroo still +remained a mystery to me. + +While the Wieroo interested me greatly, I had little time to think +about them, as our waking hours were filled with the necessities of +existence--the constant battle for survival which is the chief +occupation of Caspakians. To-mar and So-al were now about fitted for +their advent into Kro-lu society and must therefore leave us, as we +could not accompany them without incurring great danger ourselves and +running the chance of endangering them; but each swore to be always our +friend and assured us that should we need their aid at any time we had +but to ask it; nor could I doubt their sincerity, since we had been so +instrumental in bringing them safely upon their journey toward the +Kro-lu village. + +This was our last day together. In the afternoon we should separate, +To-mar and So-al going directly to the Kro-lu village, while Ajor and I +made a detour to avoid a conflict with the archers. The former both +showed evidence of nervous apprehension as the time approached for them +to make their entry into the village of their new people, and yet both +were very proud and happy. They told us that they would be well +received as additions to a tribe always are welcomed, and the more so +as the distance from the beginning increased, the higher tribes or +races being far weaker numerically than the lower. The southern end of +the island fairly swarms with the Ho-lu, or apes; next above these are +the Alus, who are slightly fewer in number than the Ho-lu; and again +there are fewer Bo-lu than Alus, and fewer Sto-lu than Bo-lu. Thus it +goes until the Kro-lu are fewer in number than any of the others; and +here the law reverses, for the Galus outnumber the Kro-lu. As Ajor +explained it to me, the reason for this is that as evolution +practically ceases with the Galus, there is no less among them on this +score, for even the cos-ata-lo are still considered Galus and remain +with them. And Galus come up both from the west and east coasts. +There are, too, fewer carnivorous reptiles at the north end of the +island, and not so many of the great and ferocious members of the cat +family as take their hideous toll of life among the races further south. + +By now I was obtaining some idea of the Caspakian scheme of evolution, +which partly accounted for the lack of young among the races I had so +far seen. Coming up from the beginning, the Caspakian passes, during a +single existence, through the various stages of evolution, or at least +many of them, through which the human race has passed during the +countless ages since life first stirred upon a new world; but the +question which continued to puzzle me was: What creates life at the +beginning, cor sva jo? + +I had noticed that as we traveled northward from the Alus' country the +land had gradually risen until we were now several hundred feet above +the level of the inland sea. Ajor told me that the Galus country was +still higher and considerably colder, which accounted for the scarcity +of reptiles. The change in form and kinds of the lower animals was +even more marked than the evolutionary stages of man. The diminutive +ecca, or small horse, became a rough-coated and sturdy little pony in +the Kro-lu country. I saw a greater number of small lions and tigers, +though many of the huge ones still persisted, while the woolly mammoth +was more in evidence, as were several varieties of the Labyrinthadonta. +These creatures, from which God save me, I should have expected to find +further south; but for some unaccountable reason they gain their +greatest bulk in the Kro-lu and Galu countries, though fortunately they +are rare. I rather imagine that they are a very early life which is +rapidly nearing extinction in Caspak, though wherever they are found, +they constitute a menace to all forms of life. + +It was mid-afternoon when To-mar and So-al bade us good-bye. We were +not far from Kro-lu village; in fact, we had approached it much closer +than we had intended, and now Ajor and I were to make a detour toward +the sea while our companions went directly in search of the Kro-lu +chief. + +Ajor and I had gone perhaps a mile or two and were just about to emerge +from a dense wood when I saw that ahead of us which caused me to draw +back into concealment, at the same time pushing Ajor behind me. What I +saw was a party of Band-lu warriors--large, fierce-appearing men. From +the direction of their march I saw that they were returning to their +caves, and that if we remained where we were, they would pass without +discovering us. + +Presently Ajor nudged me. "They have a prisoner," she whispered. "He +is a Kro-lu." + +And then I saw him, the first fully developed Kro-lu I had seen. He was +a fine-looking savage, tall and straight with a regal carriage. To-mar +was a handsome fellow; but this Kro-lu showed plainly in his every +physical attribute a higher plane of evolution. While To-mar was just +entering the Kro-lu sphere, this man, it seemed to me, must be close +indeed to the next stage of his development, which would see him an +envied Galu. + +"They will kill him?" I whispered to Ajor. + +"The dance of death," she replied, and I shuddered, so recently had I +escaped the same fate. It seemed cruel that one who must have passed +safely up through all the frightful stages of human evolution within +Caspak, should die at the very foot of his goal. I raised my rifle to +my shoulder and took careful aim at one of the Band-lu. If I hit him, +I would hit two, for another was directly behind the first. + +Ajor touched my arm. "What would you do?" she asked. "They are all +our enemies." + +"I am going to save him from the dance of death," I replied, "enemy or +no enemy," and I squeezed the trigger. At the report, the two Band-lu +lunged forward upon their faces. I handed my rifle to Ajor, and +drawing my pistol, stepped out in full view of the startled party. The +Band-lu did not run away as had some of the lower orders of Caspakians +at the sound of the rifle. Instead, the moment they saw me, they let +out a series of demoniac war-cries, and raising their spears above +their heads, charged me. + +The Kro-lu stood silent and statuesque, watching the proceedings. He +made no attempt to escape, though his feet were not bound and none of +the warriors remained to guard him. There were ten of the Band-lu +coming for me. I dropped three of them with my pistol as rapidly as a +man might count by three, and then my rifle spoke close to my left +shoulder, and another of them stumbled and rolled over and over upon +the ground. Plucky little Ajor! She had never fired a shot before in +all her life, though I had taught her to sight and aim and how to +squeeze the trigger instead of pulling it. She had practiced these new +accomplishments often, but little had I thought they would make a +marksman of her so quickly. + +With six of their fellows put out of the fight so easily, the remaining +six sought cover behind some low bushes and commenced a council of war. +I wished that they would go away, as I had no ammunition to waste, and +I was fearful that should they institute another charge, some of them +would reach us, for they were already quite close. Suddenly one of +them rose and launched his spear. It was the most marvelous exhibition +of speed I have ever witnessed. It seemed to me that he had scarce +gained an upright position when the weapon was half-way upon its +journey, speeding like an arrow toward Ajor. And then it was, with +that little life in danger, that I made the best shot I have ever made +in my life! I took no conscious aim; it was as though my subconscious +mind, impelled by a stronger power even than that of self-preservation, +directed my hand. Ajor was in danger! Simultaneously with the thought +my pistol flew to position, a streak of incandescent powder marked the +path of the bullet from its muzzle; and the spear, its point shattered, +was deflected from its path. With a howl of dismay the six Band-lu +rose from their shelter and raced away toward the south. + +I turned toward Ajor. She was very white and wide-eyed, for the +clutching fingers of death had all but seized her; but a little smile +came to her lips and an expression of great pride to her eyes. "My +Tom!" she said, and took my hand in hers. That was all--"My Tom!" and +a pressure of the hand. Her Tom! Something stirred within my bosom. +Was it exaltation or was it consternation? Impossible! I turned away +almost brusquely. + +"Come!" I said, and strode off toward the Kro-lu prisoner. + +The Kro-lu stood watching us with stolid indifference. I presume that +he expected to be killed; but if he did, he showed no outward sign of +fear. His eyes, indicating his greatest interest, were fixed upon my +pistol or the rifle which Ajor still carried. I cut his bonds with my +knife. As I did so, an expression of surprise tinged and animated the +haughty reserve of his countenance. He eyed me quizzically. + +"What are you going to do with me?" he asked. + +"You are free," I replied. "Go home, if you wish." + +"Why don't you kill me?" he inquired. "I am defenseless." + +"Why should I kill you? I have risked my life and that of this young +lady to save your life. Why, therefore should I now take it?" Of +course, I didn't say "young lady" as there is no Caspakian equivalent +for that term; but I have to allow myself considerable latitude in the +translation of Caspakian conversations. To speak always of a beautiful +young girl as a "she" may be literal; but it seems far from gallant. + +The Kro-lu concentrated his steady, level gaze upon me for at least a +full minute. Then he spoke again. + +"Who are you, man of strange skins?" he asked. "Your she is Galu; but +you are neither Galu nor Kro-lu nor Band-lu, nor any other sort of man +which I have seen before. Tell me from whence comes so mighty a +warrior and so generous a foe." + +"It is a long story," I replied, "but suffice it to say that I am not +of Caspak. I am a stranger here, and--let this sink in--I am not a +foe. I have no wish to be an enemy of any man in Caspak, with the +possible exception of the Galu warrior Du-seen." + +"Du-seen!" he exclaimed. "You are an enemy of Du-seen? And why?" + +"Because he would harm Ajor," I replied. "You know him?" + +"He cannot know him," said Ajor. "Du-seen rose from the Kro-lu long +ago, taking a new name, as all do when they enter a new sphere. He +cannot know him, as there is no intercourse between the Kro-lu and the +Galu." + +The warrior smiled. "Du-seen rose not so long ago," he said, "that I +do not recall him well, and recently he has taken it upon himself to +abrogate the ancient laws of Caspak; he had had intercourse with the +Kro-lu. Du-seen would be chief of the Galus, and he has come to the +Kro-lu for help." + +Ajor was aghast. The thing was incredible. Never had Kro-lu and Galu +had friendly relations; by the savage laws of Caspak they were deadly +enemies, for only so can the several races maintain their individuality. + +"Will the Kro-lu join him?" asked Ajor. "Will they invade the country +of Jor my father?" + +"The younger Kro-lu favor the plan," replied the warrior, "since they +believe they will thus become Galus immediately. They hope to span the +long years of change through which they must pass in the ordinary +course of events and at a single stride become Galus. We of the older +Kro-lu tell them that though they occupy the land of the Galu and wear +the skins and ornaments of the golden people, still they will not be +Galus till the time arrives that they are ripe to rise. We also tell +them that even then they will never become a true Galu race, since +there will still be those among them who can never rise. It is all +right to raid the Galu country occasionally for plunder, as our people +do; but to attempt to conquer it and hold it is madness. For my part, +I have been content to wait until the call came to me. I feel that it +cannot now be long." + +"What is your name?" asked Ajor. + +"Chal-az," replied the man. + +"You are chief of the Kro-lu?" Ajor continued. + +"No, it is Al-tan who is chief of the Kro-lu of the east," answered +Chal-az. + +"And he is against this plan to invade my father's country?" + +"Unfortunately he is rather in favor of it," replied the man, "since he +has about come to the conclusion that he is batu. He has been chief +ever since, before I came up from the Band-lu, and I can see no change +in him in all those years. In fact, he still appears to be more +Band-lu than Kro-lu. However, he is a good chief and a mighty warrior, +and if Du-seen persuades him to his cause, the Galus may find +themselves under a Kro-lu chieftain before long--Du-seen as well as the +others, for Al-tan would never consent to occupy a subordinate +position, and once he plants a victorious foot in Galu, he will not +withdraw it without a struggle." + +I asked them what batu meant, as I had not before heard the word. +Literally translated, it is equivalent to through, finished, done-for, +as applied to an individual's evolutionary progress in Caspak, and with +this information was developed the interesting fact that not every +individual is capable of rising through every stage to that of Galu. +Some never progress beyond the Alu stage; others stop as Bo-lu, as +Sto-lu, as Band-lu or as Kro-lu. The Ho-lu of the first generation may +rise to become Alus; the Alus of the second generation may become +Bo-lu, while it requires three generations of Bo-lu to become Band-lu, +and so on until Kro-lu's parent on one side must be of the sixth +generation. + +It was not entirely plain to me even with this explanation, since I +couldn't understand how there could be different generations of peoples +who apparently had no offspring. Yet I was commencing to get a slight +glimmer of the strange laws which govern propagation and evolution in +this weird land. Already I knew that the warm pools which always lie +close to every tribal abiding-place were closely linked with the +Caspakian scheme of evolution, and that the daily immersion of the +females in the greenish slimy water was in response to some natural +law, since neither pleasure nor cleanliness could be derived from what +seemed almost a religious rite. Yet I was still at sea; nor, +seemingly, could Ajor enlighten me, since she was compelled to use +words which I could not understand and which it was impossible for her +to explain the meanings of. + +As we stood talking, we were suddenly startled by a commotion in the +bushes and among the boles of the trees surrounding us, and +simultaneously a hundred Kro-lu warriors appeared in a rough circle +about us. They greeted Chal-az with a volley of questions as they +approached slowly from all sides, their heavy bows fitted with long, +sharp arrows. Upon Ajor and me they looked with covetousness in the +one instance and suspicion in the other; but after they had heard +Chal-az's story, their attitude was more friendly. A huge savage did +all the talking. He was a mountain of a man, yet perfectly +proportioned. + +"This is Al-tan the chief," said Chal-az by way of introduction. Then +he told something of my story, and Al-tan asked me many questions of +the land from which I came. The warriors crowded around close to hear +my replies, and there were many expressions of incredulity as I spoke +of what was to them another world, of the yacht which had brought me +over vast waters, and of the plane that had borne me Jo-oo-like over +the summit of the barrier-cliffs. It was the mention of the +hydroaeroplane which precipitated the first outspoken skepticism, and +then Ajor came to my defense. + +"I saw it with my own eyes!" she exclaimed. "I saw him flying through +the air in battle with a Jo-oo. The Alus were chasing me, and they saw +and ran away." + +"Whose is this she?" demanded Al-tan suddenly, his eyes fixed fiercely +upon Ajor. + +For a moment there was silence. Ajor looked up at me, a hurt and +questioning expression on her face. "Whose she is this?" repeated +Al-tan. + +"She is mine," I replied, though what force it was that impelled me to +say it I could not have told; but an instant later I was glad that I +had spoken the words, for the reward of Ajor's proud and happy face was +reward indeed. + +Al-tan eyed her for several minutes and then turned to me. "Can you +keep her?" he asked, just the tinge of a sneer upon his face. + +I laid my palm upon the grip of my pistol and answered that I could. +He saw the move, glanced at the butt of the automatic where it +protruded from its holster, and smiled. Then he turned and raising his +great bow, fitted an arrow and drew the shaft far back. His warriors, +supercilious smiles upon their faces, stood silently watching him. His +bow was the longest and the heaviest among them all. A mighty man +indeed must he be to bend it; yet Al-tan drew the shaft back until the +stone point touched his left forefinger, and he did it with consummate +ease. Then he raised the shaft to the level of his right eye, held it +there for an instant and released it. When the arrow stopped, half its +length protruded from the opposite side of a six-inch tree fifty feet +away. Al-tan and his warriors turned toward me with expressions of +immense satisfaction upon their faces, and then, apparently for Ajor's +benefit, the chieftain swaggered to and fro a couple of times, swinging +his great arms and his bulky shoulders for all the world like a drunken +prize-fighter at a beach dancehall. + +I saw that some reply was necessary, and so in a single motion, I drew +my gun, dropped it on the still quivering arrow and pulled the trigger. +At the sound of the report, the Kro-lu leaped back and raised their +weapons; but as I was smiling, they took heart and lowered them again, +following my eyes to the tree; the shaft of their chief was gone, and +through the bole was a little round hole marking the path of my bullet. +It was a good shot if I do say it myself, "as shouldn't" but necessity +must have guided that bullet; I simply had to make a good shot, that I +might immediately establish my position among those savage and warlike +Caspakians of the sixth sphere. That it had its effect was immediately +noticeable, but I am none too sure that it helped my cause with Al-tan. +Whereas he might have condescended to tolerate me as a harmless and +interesting curiosity, he now, by the change in his expression, +appeared to consider me in a new and unfavorable light. Nor can I +wonder, knowing this type as I did, for had I not made him ridiculous +in the eyes of his warriors, beating him at his own game? What king, +savage or civilized, could condone such impudence? Seeing his black +scowls, I deemed it expedient, especially on Ajor's account, to +terminate the interview and continue upon our way; but when I would +have done so, Al-tan detained us with a gesture, and his warriors +pressed around us. + +"What is the meaning of this?" I demanded, and before Al-tan could +reply, Chal-az raised his voice in our behalf. + +"Is this the gratitude of a Kro-lu chieftain, Al-tan," he asked, "to +one who has served you by saving one of your warriors from the +enemy--saving him from the death dance of the Band-lu?" + +Al-tan was silent for a moment, and then his brow cleared, and the +faint imitation of a pleasant expression struggled for existence as he +said: "The stranger will not be harmed. I wished only to detain him +that he may be feasted tonight in the village of Al-tan the Kro-lu. In +the morning he may go his way. Al-tan will not hinder him." + +I was not entirely reassured; but I wanted to see the interior of the +Kro-lu village, and anyway I knew that if Al-tan intended treachery I +would be no more in his power in the morning than I now was--in fact, +during the night I might find opportunity to escape with Ajor, while at +the instant neither of us could hope to escape unscathed from the +encircling warriors. Therefore, in order to disarm him of any thought +that I might entertain suspicion as to his sincerity, I promptly and +courteously accepted his invitation. His satisfaction was evident, and +as we set off toward his village, he walked beside me, asking many +questions as to the country from which I came, its peoples and their +customs. He seemed much mystified by the fact that we could walk +abroad by day or night without fear of being devoured by wild beasts or +savage reptiles, and when I told him of the great armies which we +maintained, his simple mind could not grasp the fact that they existed +solely for the slaughtering of human beings. + +"I am glad," he said, "that I do not dwell in your country among such +savage peoples. Here, in Caspak, men fight with men when they +meet--men of different races--but their weapons are first for the +slaying of beasts in the chase and in defense. We do not fashion +weapons solely for the killing of man as do your peoples. Your country +must indeed be a savage country, from which you are fortunate to have +escaped to the peace and security of Caspak." + +Here was a new and refreshing viewpoint; nor could I take exception to +it after what I had told Al-tan of the great war which had been raging +in Europe for over two years before I left home. + +On the march to the Kro-lu village we were continually stalked by +innumerable beasts of prey, and three times we were attacked by +frightful creatures; but Al-tan took it all as a matter of course, +rushing forward with raised spear or sending a heavy shaft into the +body of the attacker and then returning to our conversation as though +no interruption had occurred. Twice were members of his band mauled, +and one was killed by a huge and bellicose rhinoceros; but the instant +the action was over, it was as though it never had occurred. The dead +man was stripped of his belongings and left where he had died; the +carnivora would take care of his burial. The trophies that these +Kro-lu left to the meat-eaters would have turned an English big-game +hunter green with envy. They did, it is true, cut all the edible parts +from the rhino and carry them home; but already they were pretty well +weighted down with the spoils of the chase, and only the fact that they +are particularly fond of rhino-meat caused them to do so. + +They left the hide on the pieces they selected, as they use it for +sandals, shield-covers, the hilts of their knives and various other +purposes where tough hide is desirable. I was much interested in their +shields, especially after I saw one used in defense against the attack +of a saber-tooth tiger. The huge creature had charged us without +warning from a clump of dense bushes where it was lying up after +eating. It was met with an avalanche of spears, some of which passed +entirely through its body, with such force were they hurled. The +charge was from a very short distance, requiring the use of the spear +rather than the bow and arrow; but after the launching of the spears, +the men not directly in the path of the charge sent bolt after bolt +into the great carcass with almost incredible rapidity. The beast, +screaming with pain and rage, bore down upon Chal-az while I stood +helpless with my rifle for fear of hitting one of the warriors who were +closing in upon it. But Chal-az was ready. Throwing aside his bow, he +crouched behind his large oval shield, in the center of which was a +hole about six inches in diameter. The shield was held by tight loops +to his left arm, while in his right hand he grasped his heavy knife. +Bristling with spears and arrows, the great cat hurled itself upon the +shield, and down went Chal-az upon his back with the shield entirely +covering him. The tiger clawed and bit at the heavy rhinoceros hide +with which the shield was faced, while Chal-az, through the round hole +in the shield's center, plunged his blade repeatedly into the vitals of +the savage animal. Doubtless the battle would have gone to Chal-az +even though I had not interfered; but the moment that I saw a clean +opening, with no Kro-lu beyond, I raised my rifle and killed the beast. + +When Chal-az arose, he glanced at the sky and remarked that it looked +like rain. The others already had resumed the march toward the +village. The incident was closed. For some unaccountable reason the +whole thing reminded me of a friend who once shot a cat in his +backyard. For three weeks he talked of nothing else. + +It was almost dark when we reached the village--a large palisaded +enclosure of several hundred leaf-thatched huts set in groups of from +two to seven. The huts were hexagonal in form, and where grouped were +joined so that they resembled the cells of a bee-hive. One hut meant a +warrior and his mate, and each additional hut in a group indicated an +additional female. The palisade which surrounded the village was of +logs set close together and woven into a solid wall with tough creepers +which were planted at their base and trained to weave in and out to +bind the logs together. The logs slanted outward at an angle of about +thirty degrees, in which position they were held by shorter logs +embedded in the ground at right angles to them and with their upper +ends supporting the longer pieces a trifle above their centers of +equilibrium. Along the top of the palisade sharpened stakes had been +driven at all sorts of angles. + +The only opening into the inclosure was through a small aperture three +feet wide and three feet high, which was closed from the inside by logs +about six feet long laid horizontally, one upon another, between the +inside face of the palisade and two other braced logs which paralleled +the face of the wall upon the inside. + +As we entered the village, we were greeted by a not unfriendly crowd of +curious warriors and women, to whom Chal-az generously explained the +service we had rendered him, whereupon they showered us with the most +well-meant attentions, for Chal-az, it seemed, was a most popular +member of the tribe. Necklaces of lion- and tiger-teeth, bits of dried +meat, finely tanned hides and earthen pots, beautifully decorated, they +thrust upon us until we were loaded down, and all the while Al-tan +glared balefully upon us, seemingly jealous of the attentions heaped +upon us because we had served Chal-az. + +At last we reached a hut that they set apart for us, and there we +cooked our meat and some vegetables the women brought us, and had milk +from cows--the first I had had in Caspak--and cheese from the milk of +wild goats, with honey and thin bread made from wheat flour of their +own grinding, and grapes and the fermented juice of grapes. It was +quite the most wonderful meal I had eaten since I quit the _Toreador_ and +Bowen J. Tyler's colored chef, who could make pork-chops taste like +chicken, and chicken taste like heaven. + + + +Chapter 6 + +After dinner I rolled a cigaret and stretched myself at ease upon a +pile of furs before the doorway, with Ajor's head pillowed in my lap +and a feeling of great content pervading me. It was the first time +since my plane had topped the barrier-cliffs of Caspak that I had felt +any sense of peace or security. My hand wandered to the velvet cheek +of the girl I had claimed as mine, and to her luxuriant hair and the +golden fillet which bound it close to her shapely head. Her slender +fingers groping upward sought mine and drew them to her lips, and then +I gathered her in my arms and crushed her to me, smothering her mouth +with a long, long kiss. It was the first time that passion had tinged +my intercourse with Ajor. We were alone, and the hut was ours until +morning. + +But now from beyond the palisade in the direction of the main gate came +the hallooing of men and the answering calls and queries of the guard. +We listened. Returning hunters, no doubt. We heard them enter the +village amidst the barking dogs. I have forgotten to mention the dogs +of Kro-lu. The village swarmed with them, gaunt, wolflike creatures +that guarded the herd by day when it grazed without the palisade, ten +dogs to a cow. By night the cows were herded in an outer inclosure +roofed against the onslaughts of the carnivorous cats; and the dogs, +with the exception of a few, were brought into the village; these few +well-tested brutes remained with the herd. During the day they fed +plentifully upon the beasts of prey which they killed in protection of +the herd, so that their keep amounted to nothing at all. + +Shortly after the commotion at the gate had subsided, Ajor and I arose +to enter the hut, and at the same time a warrior appeared from one of +the twisted alleys which, lying between the irregularly placed huts and +groups of huts, form the streets of the Kro-lu village. The fellow +halted before us and addressed me, saying that Al-tan desired my +presence at his hut. The wording of the invitation and the manner of +the messenger threw me entirely off my guard, so cordial was the one +and respectful the other, and the result was that I went willingly, +telling Ajor that I would return presently. I had laid my arms and +ammunition aside as soon as we had taken over the hut, and I left them +with Ajor now, as I had noticed that aside from their hunting-knives +the men of Kro-lu bore no weapons about the village streets. There was +an atmosphere of peace and security within that village that I had not +hoped to experience within Caspak, and after what I had passed through, +it must have cast a numbing spell over my faculties of judgment and +reason. I had eaten of the lotus-flower of safety; dangers no longer +threatened for they had ceased to be. + +The messenger led me through the labyrinthine alleys to an open plaza +near the center of the village. At one end of this plaza was a long +hut, much the largest that I had yet seen, before the door of which +were many warriors. I could see that the interior was lighted and that +a great number of men were gathered within. The dogs about the plaza +were as thick as fleas, and those I approached closely evinced a strong +desire to devour me, their noses evidently apprising them of the fact +that I was of an alien race, since they paid no attention whatever to +my companion. Once inside the council-hut, for such it appeared to be, +I found a large concourse of warriors seated, or rather squatted, +around the floor. At one end of the oval space which the warriors left +down the center of the room stood Al-tan and another warrior whom I +immediately recognized as a Galu, and then I saw that there were many +Galus present. About the walls were a number of flaming torches stuck +in holes in a clay plaster which evidently served the purpose of +preventing the inflammable wood and grasses of which the hut was +composed from being ignited by the flames. Lying about among the +warriors or wandering restlessly to and fro were a number of savage +dogs. + +The warriors eyed me curiously as I entered, especially the Galus, and +then I was conducted into the center of the group and led forward +toward Al-tan. As I advanced I felt one of the dogs sniffing at my +heels, and of a sudden a great brute leaped upon my back. As I turned +to thrust it aside before its fangs found a hold upon me, I beheld a +huge Airedale leaping frantically about me. The grinning jaws, the +half-closed eyes, the back-laid ears spoke to me louder than might the +words of man that here was no savage enemy but a joyous friend, and +then I recognized him, and fell to one knee and put my arms about his +neck while he whined and cried with joy. It was Nobs, dear old Nobs. +Bowen Tyler's Nobs, who had loved me next to his master. + +"Where is the master of this dog?" I asked, turning toward Al-tan. + +The chieftain inclined his head toward the Galu standing at his side. +"He belongs to Du-seen the Galu," he replied. + +"He belongs to Bowen J. Tyler, Jr., of Santa Monica," I retorted, "and +I want to know where his master is." + +The Galu shrugged. "The dog is mine," he said. "He came to me +cor-sva-jo, and he is unlike any dog in Caspak, being kind and docile +and yet a killer when aroused. I would not part with him. I do not +know the man of whom you speak." + +So this was Du-seen! This was the man from whom Ajor had fled. I +wondered if he knew that she was here. I wondered if they had sent for +me because of her; but after they had commenced to question me, my mind +was relieved; they did not mention Ajor. Their interest seemed +centered upon the strange world from which I had come, my journey to +Caspak and my intentions now that I had arrived. I answered them +frankly as I had nothing to conceal and assured them that my only wish +was to find my friends and return to my own country. In the Galu +Du-seen and his warriors I saw something of the explanation of the term +"golden race" which is applied to them, for their ornaments and weapons +were either wholly of beaten gold or heavily decorated with the +precious metal. They were a very imposing set of men--tall and +straight and handsome. About their heads were bands of gold like that +which Ajor wore, and from their left shoulders depended the +leopard-tails of the Galus. In addition to the deer-skin tunic which +constituted the major portion of their apparel, each carried a light +blanket of barbaric yet beautiful design--the first evidence of weaving +I had seen in Caspak. Ajor had had no blanket, having lost it during +her flight from the attentions of Du-seen; nor was she so heavily +incrusted with gold as these male members of her tribe. + +The audience must have lasted fully an hour when Al-tan signified that +I might return to my hut. All the time Nobs had lain quietly at my +feet; but the instant that I turned to leave, he was up and after me. +Du-seen called to him; but the terrier never even so much as looked in +his direction. I had almost reached the doorway leading from the +council-hall when Al-tan rose and called after me. "Stop!" he shouted. +"Stop, stranger! The beast of Du-seen the Galu follows you." + +"The dog is not Du-seen's," I replied. "He belongs to my friend, as I +told you, and he prefers to stay with me until his master is found." +And I turned again to resume my way. I had taken but a few steps when +I heard a commotion behind me, and at the same moment a man leaned +close and whispered "Kazar!" close to my ear--kazar, the Caspakian +equivalent of beware. It was To-mar. As he spoke, he turned quickly +away as though loath to have others see that he knew me, and at the +same instant I wheeled to discover Du-seen striding rapidly after me. +Al-tan followed him, and it was evident that both were angry. + +Du-seen, a weapon half drawn, approached truculently. "The beast is +mine," he reiterated. "Would you steal him?" + +"He is not yours nor mine," I replied, "and I am not stealing him. If +he wishes to follow you, he may; I will not interfere; but if he wishes +to follow me, he shall; nor shall you prevent." I turned to Al-tan. +"Is not that fair?" I demanded. "Let the dog choose his master." + +Du-seen, without waiting for Al-tan's reply, reached for Nobs and +grasped him by the scruff of the neck. I did not interfere, for I +guessed what would happen; and it did. With a savage growl Nobs turned +like lightning upon the Galu, wrenched loose from his hold and leaped +for his throat. The man stepped back and warded off the first attack +with a heavy blow of his fist, immediately drawing his knife with which +to meet the Airedale's return. And Nobs would have returned, all +right, had not I spoken to him. In a low voice I called him to heel. +For just an instant he hesitated, standing there trembling and with +bared fangs, glaring at his foe; but he was well trained and had been +out with me quite as much as he had with Bowen--in fact, I had had most +to do with his early training; then he walked slowly and very +stiff-legged to his place behind me. + +Du-seen, red with rage, would have had it out with the two of us had +not Al-tan drawn him to one side and whispered in his ear--upon which, +with a grunt, the Galu walked straight back to the opposite end of the +hall, while Nobs and I continued upon our way toward the hut and Ajor. +As we passed out into the village plaza, I saw Chal-az--we were so +close to one another that I could have reached out and touched him--and +our eyes met; but though I greeted him pleasantly and paused to speak +to him, he brushed past me without a sign of recognition. I was +puzzled at his behavior, and then I recalled that To-mar, though he had +warned me, had appeared not to wish to seem friendly with me. I could +not understand their attitude, and was trying to puzzle out some sort +of explanation, when the matter was suddenly driven from my mind by the +report of a firearm. Instantly I broke into a run, my brain in a whirl +of forebodings, for the only firearms in the Kro-lu country were those +I had left in the hut with Ajor. + +That she was in danger I could not but fear, as she was now something +of an adept in the handling of both the pistol and rifle, a fact which +largely eliminated the chance that the shot had come from an +accidentally discharged firearm. When I left the hut, I had felt that +she and I were safe among friends; no thought of danger was in my mind; +but since my audience with Al-tan, the presence and bearing of Du-seen +and the strange attitude of both To-mar and Chal-az had each +contributed toward arousing my suspicions, and now I ran along the +narrow, winding alleys of the Kro-lu village with my heart fairly in my +mouth. + +I am endowed with an excellent sense of direction, which has been +greatly perfected by the years I have spent in the mountains and upon +the plains and deserts of my native state, so that it was with little +or no difficulty that I found my way back to the hut in which I had +left Ajor. As I entered the doorway, I called her name aloud. There +was no response. I drew a box of matches from my pocket and struck a +light and as the flame flared up, a half-dozen brawny warriors leaped +upon me from as many directions; but even in the brief instant that the +flare lasted, I saw that Ajor was not within the hut, and that my arms +and ammunition had been removed. + +As the six men leaped upon me, an angry growl burst from behind them. +I had forgotten Nobs. Like a demon of hate he sprang among those +Kro-lu fighting-men, tearing, rending, ripping with his long tusks and +his mighty jaws. They had me down in an instant, and it goes without +saying that the six of them could have kept me there had it not been +for Nobs; but while I was struggling to throw them off, Nobs was +springing first upon one and then upon another of them until they were +so put to it to preserve their hides and their lives from him that they +could give me only a small part of their attention. One of them was +assiduously attempting to strike me on the head with his stone hatchet; +but I caught his arm and at the same time turned over upon my belly, +after which it took but an instant to get my feet under me and rise +suddenly. + +As I did so, I kept a grip upon the man's arm, carrying it over one +shoulder. Then I leaned suddenly forward and hurled my antagonist over +my head to a hasty fall at the opposite side of the hut. In the dim +light of the interior I saw that Nobs had already accounted for one of +the others--one who lay very quiet upon the floor--while the four +remaining upon their feet were striking at him with knives and hatchets. + +Running to one side of the man I had just put out of the fighting, I +seized his hatchet and knife, and in another moment was in the thick of +the argument. I was no match for these savage warriors with their own +weapons and would soon have gone down to ignominious defeat and death +had it not been for Nobs, who alone was a match for the four of them. +I never saw any creature so quick upon its feet as was that great +Airedale, nor such frightful ferocity as he manifested in his attacks. +It was as much the latter as the former which contributed to the +undoing of our enemies, who, accustomed though they were to the +ferocity of terrible creatures, seemed awed by the sight of this +strange beast from another world battling at the side of his equally +strange master. Yet they were no cowards, and only by teamwork did +Nobs and I overcome them at last. We would rush for a man, +simultaneously, and as Nobs leaped for him upon one side, I would +strike at his head with the stone hatchet from the other. + +As the last man went down, I heard the running of many feet approaching +us from the direction of the plaza. To be captured now would mean +death; yet I could not attempt to leave the village without first +ascertaining the whereabouts of Ajor and releasing her if she were held +a captive. That I could escape the village I was not at all sure; but +of one thing I was positive; that it would do neither Ajor nor myself +any service to remain where I was and be captured; so with Nobs, bloody +but happy, following at heel, I turned down the first alley and slunk +away in the direction of the northern end of the village. + +Friendless and alone, hunted through the dark labyrinths of this savage +community, I seldom have felt more helpless than at that moment; yet +far transcending any fear which I may have felt for my own safety was +my concern for that of Ajor. What fate had befallen her? Where was +she, and in whose power? That I should live to learn the answers to +these queries I doubted; but that I should face death gladly in the +attempt--of that I was certain. And why? With all my concern for the +welfare of my friends who had accompanied me to Caprona, and of my best +friend of all, Bowen J. Tyler, Jr., I never yet had experienced the +almost paralyzing fear for the safety of any other creature which now +threw me alternately into a fever of despair and into a cold sweat of +apprehension as my mind dwelt upon the fate on one bit of half-savage +femininity of whose very existence even I had not dreamed a few short +weeks before. + +What was this hold she had upon me? Was I bewitched, that my mind +refused to function sanely, and that judgment and reason were dethroned +by some mad sentiment which I steadfastly refused to believe was love? +I had never been in love. I was not in love now--the very thought was +preposterous. How could I, Thomas Billings, the right-hand man of the +late Bowen J. Tyler, Sr., one of America's foremost captains of +industry and the greatest man in California, be in love with a--a--the +word stuck in my throat; yet by my own American standards Ajor could be +nothing else; at home, for all her beauty, for all her delicately +tinted skin, little Ajor by her apparel, by the habits and customs and +manners of her people, by her life, would have been classed a squaw. +Tom Billings in love with a squaw! I shuddered at the thought. + +And then there came to my mind, in a sudden, brilliant flash upon the +screen of recollection the picture of Ajor as I had last seen her, and +I lived again the delicious moment in which we had clung to one +another, lips smothering lips, as I left her to go to the council hall +of Al-tan; and I could have kicked myself for the snob and the cad that +my thoughts had proven me--me, who had always prided myself that I was +neither the one nor the other! + +These things ran through my mind as Nobs and I made our way through the +dark village, the voices and footsteps of those who sought us still in +our ears. These and many other things, nor could I escape the +incontrovertible fact that the little figure round which my +recollections and my hopes entwined themselves was that of +Ajor--beloved barbarian! My reveries were broken in upon by a hoarse +whisper from the black interior of a hut past which we were making our +way. My name was called in a low voice, and a man stepped out beside +me as I halted with raised knife. It was Chal-az. + +"Quick!" he warned. "In here! It is my hut, and they will not search +it." + +I hesitated, recalled his attitude of a few minutes before; and as +though he had read my thoughts, he said quickly: "I could not speak to +you in the plaza without danger of arousing suspicions which would +prevent me aiding you later, for word had gone out that Al-tan had +turned against you and would destroy you--this was after Du-seen the +Galu arrived." + +I followed him into the hut, and with Nobs at our heels we passed +through several chambers into a remote and windowless apartment where a +small lamp sputtered in its unequal battle with the inky darkness. A +hole in the roof permitted the smoke from burning oil egress; yet the +atmosphere was far from lucid. Here Chal-az motioned me to a seat upon +a furry hide spread upon the earthen floor. + +"I am your friend," he said. "You saved my life; and I am no ingrate +as is the batu Al-tan. I will serve you, and there are others here who +will serve you against Al-tan and this renegade Galu, Du-seen." + +"But where is Ajor?" I asked, for I cared little for my own safety +while she was in danger. + +"Ajor is safe, too," he answered. "We learned the designs of Al-tan +and Du-seen. The latter, learning that Ajor was here, demanded her; +and Al-tan promised that he should have her; but when the warriors went +to get her To-mar went with them. Ajor tried to defend herself. She +killed one of the warriors, and then To-mar picked her up in his arms +when the others had taken her weapons from her. He told the others to +look after the wounded man, who was really already dead, and to seize +you upon your return, and that he, To-mar, would bear Ajor to Al-tan; +but instead of bearing her to Al-tan, he took her to his own hut, where +she now is with So-al, To-mar's she. It all happened very quickly. +To-mar and I were in the council-hut when Du-seen attempted to take the +dog from you. I was seeking To-mar for this work. He ran out +immediately and accompanied the warriors to your hut while I remained +to watch what went on within the council-hut and to aid you if you +needed aid. What has happened since you know." + +I thanked him for his loyalty and then asked him to take me to Ajor; +but he said that it could not be done, as the village streets were +filled with searchers. In fact, we could hear them passing to and fro +among the huts, making inquiries, and at last Chal-az thought it best +to go to the doorway of his dwelling, which consisted of many huts +joined together, lest they enter and search. + +Chal-az was absent for a long time--several hours which seemed an +eternity to me. All sounds of pursuit had long since ceased, and I was +becoming uneasy because of his protracted absence when I heard him +returning through the other apartments of his dwelling. He was +perturbed when he entered that in which I awaited him, and I saw a +worried expression upon his face. + +"What is wrong?" I asked. "Have they found Ajor?" + +"No," he replied; "but Ajor has gone. She learned that you had escaped +them and was told that you had left the village, believing that she had +escaped too. So-al could not detain her. She made her way out over +the top of the palisade, armed with only her knife." + +"Then I must go," I said, rising. Nobs rose and shook himself. He had +been dead asleep when I spoke. + +"Yes," agreed Chal-az, "you must go at once. It is almost dawn. +Du-seen leaves at daylight to search for her." He leaned close to my +ear and whispered: "There are many to follow and help you. Al-tan has +agreed to aid Du-seen against the Galus of Jor; but there are many of +us who have combined to rise against Al-tan and prevent this ruthless +desecration of the laws and customs of the Kro-lu and of Caspak. We +will rise as Luata has ordained that we shall rise, and only thus. No +batu may win to the estate of a Galu by treachery and force of arms +while Chal-az lives and may wield a heavy blow and a sharp spear with +true Kro-lus at his back!" + +"I hope that I may live to aid you," I replied. "If I had my weapons +and my ammunition, I could do much. Do you know where they are?" "No," +he said, "they have disappeared." And then: "Wait! You cannot go +forth half armed, and garbed as you are. You are going into the Galu +country, and you must go as a Galu. Come!" And without waiting for a +reply, he led me into another apartment, or to be more explicit, +another of the several huts which formed his cellular dwelling. + +Here was a pile of skins, weapons, and ornaments. "Remove your strange +apparel," said Chal-az, "and I will fit you out as a true Galu. I have +slain several of them in the raids of my early days as a Kro-lu, and +here are their trappings." + +I saw the wisdom of his suggestion, and as my clothes were by now so +ragged as to but half conceal my nakedness, I had no regrets in laying +them aside. Stripped to the skin, I donned the red-deerskin tunic, the +leopard-tail, the golden fillet, armlets and leg-ornaments of a Galu, +with the belt, scabbard and knife, the shield, spear, bow and arrow and +the long rope which I learned now for the first time is the distinctive +weapon of the Galu warrior. It is a rawhide rope, not dissimilar to +those of the Western plains and cow-camps of my youth. The honda is a +golden oval and accurate weight for the throwing of the noose. This +heavy honda, Chal-az explained, is used as a weapon, being thrown with +great force and accuracy at an enemy and then coiled in for another +cast. In hunting and in battle, they use both the noose and the honda. +If several warriors surround a single foeman or quarry, they rope it +with the noose from several sides; but a single warrior against a lone +antagonist will attempt to brain his foe with the metal oval. + +I could not have been more pleased with any weapon, short of a rifle, +which he could have found for me, since I have been adept with the rope +from early childhood; but I must confess that I was less favorably +inclined toward my apparel. In so far as the sensation was concerned, +I might as well have been entirely naked, so short and light was the +tunic. When I asked Chal-az for the Caspakian name for rope, he told +me ga, and for the first time I understood the derivation of the word +Galu, which means ropeman. + +Entirely outfitted I would not have known myself, so strange was my +garb and my armament. Upon my back were slung my bow, arrows, shield, +and short spear; from the center of my girdle depended my knife; at my +right hip was my stone hatchet; and at my left hung the coils of my +long rope. By reaching my right hand over my left shoulder, I could +seize the spear or arrows; my left hand could find my bow over my right +shoulder, while a veritable contortionist-act was necessary to place my +shield in front of me and upon my left arm. The shield, long and oval, +is utilized more as back-armor than as a defense against frontal +attack, for the close-set armlets of gold upon the left forearm are +principally depended upon to ward off knife, spear, hatchet, or arrow +from in front; but against the greater carnivora and the attacks of +several human antagonists, the shield is utilized to its best advantage +and carried by loops upon the left arm. + +Fully equipped, except for a blanket, I followed Chal-az from his +domicile into the dark and deserted alleys of Kro-lu. Silently we +crept along, Nobs silent at heel, toward the nearest portion of the +palisade. Here Chal-az bade me farewell, telling me that he hoped to +see me soon among the Galus, as he felt that "the call soon would come" +to him. I thanked him for his loyal assistance and promised that +whether I reached the Galu country or not, I should always stand ready +to repay his kindness to me, and that he could count on me in the +revolution against Al-tan. + + + +Chapter 7 + +To run up the inclined surface of the palisade and drop to the ground +outside was the work of but a moment, or would have been but for Nobs. +I had to put my rope about him after we reached the top, lift him over +the sharpened stakes and lower him upon the outside. To find Ajor in +the unknown country to the north seemed rather hopeless; yet I could do +no less than try, praying in the meanwhile that she would come through +unscathed and in safety to her father. + +As Nobs and I swung along in the growing light of the coming day, I was +impressed by the lessening numbers of savage beasts the farther north I +traveled. With the decrease among the carnivora, the herbivora +increased in quantity, though anywhere in Caspak they are sufficiently +plentiful to furnish ample food for the meateaters of each locality. +The wild cattle, antelope, deer, and horses I passed showed changes in +evolution from their cousins farther south. The kine were smaller and +less shaggy, the horses larger. North of the Kro-lu village I saw a +small band of the latter of about the size of those of our old Western +plains--such as the Indians bred in former days and to a lesser extent +even now. They were fat and sleek, and I looked upon them with +covetous eyes and with thoughts that any old cow-puncher may well +imagine I might entertain after having hoofed it for weeks; but they +were wary, scarce permitting me to approach within bow-and-arrow range, +much less within roping-distance; yet I still had hopes which I never +discarded. + +Twice before noon we were stalked and charged by man-eaters; but even +though I was without firearms, I still had ample protection in Nobs, +who evidently had learned something of Caspakian hunt rules under the +tutelage of Du-seen or some other Galu, and of course a great deal more +by experience. He always was on the alert for dangerous foes, +invariably warning me by low growls of the approach of a large +carnivorous animal long before I could either see or hear it, and then +when the thing appeared, he would run snapping at its heels, drawing +the charge away from me until I found safety in some tree; yet never +did the wily Nobs take an unnecessary chance of a mauling. He would +dart in and away so quickly that not even the lightning-like movements +of the great cats could reach him. I have seen him tantalize them thus +until they fairly screamed in rage. + +The greatest inconvenience the hunters caused me was the delay, for +they have a nasty habit of keeping one treed for an hour or more if +balked in their designs; but at last we came in sight of a line of +cliffs running east and west across our path as far as the eye could +see in either direction, and I knew that we reached the natural +boundary which marks the line between the Kro-lu and Galu countries. +The southern face of these cliffs loomed high and forbidding, rising to +an altitude of some two hundred feet, sheer and precipitous, without a +break that the eye could perceive. How I was to find a crossing I +could not guess. Whether to search to the east toward the still +loftier barrier-cliffs fronting upon the ocean, or westward in the +direction of the inland sea was a question which baffled me. Were +there many passes or only one? I had no way of knowing. I could but +trust to chance. It never occurred to me that Nobs had made the +crossing at least once, possibly a greater number of times, and that he +might lead me to the pass; and so it was with no idea of assistance +that I appealed to him as a man alone with a dumb brute so often does. + +"Nobs," I said, "how the devil are we going to cross those cliffs?" + +I do not say that he understood me, even though I realize that an +Airedale is a mighty intelligent dog; but I do swear that he seemed to +understand me, for he wheeled about, barking joyously and trotted off +toward the west; and when I didn't follow him, he ran back to me +barking furiously, and at last taking hold of the calf of my leg in an +effort to pull me along in the direction he wished me to go. Now, as +my legs were naked and Nobs' jaws are much more powerful than he +realizes, I gave in and followed him, for I knew that I might as well +go west as east, as far as any knowledge I had of the correct direction +went. + +We followed the base of the cliffs for a considerable distance. The +ground was rolling and tree-dotted and covered with grazing animals, +alone, in pairs and in herds--a motley aggregation of the modern and +extinct herbivora of the world. A huge woolly mastodon stood swaying +to and fro in the shade of a giant fern--a mighty bull with enormous +upcurving tusks. Near him grazed an aurochs bull with a cow and a +calf, close beside a lone rhinoceros asleep in a dust-hole. Deer, +antelope, bison, horses, sheep, and goats were all in sight at the same +time, and at a little distance a great megatherium reared up on its +huge tail and massive hind feet to tear the leaves from a tall tree. +The forgotten past rubbed flanks with the present--while Tom Billings, +modern of the moderns, passed in the garb of pre-Glacial man, and +before him trotted a creature of a breed scarce sixty years old. Nobs +was a parvenu; but it failed to worry him. + +As we neared the inland sea we saw more flying reptiles and several +great amphibians, but none of them attacked us. As we were topping a +rise in the middle of the afternoon, I saw something that brought me to +a sudden stop. Calling Nobs in a whisper, I cautioned him to silence +and kept him at heel while I threw myself flat and watched, from behind +a sheltering shrub, a body of warriors approaching the cliff from the +south. I could see that they were Galus, and I guessed that Du-seen +led them. They had taken a shorter route to the pass and so had +overhauled me. I could see them plainly, for they were no great +distance away, and saw with relief that Ajor was not with them. + +The cliffs before them were broken and ragged, those coming from the +east overlapping the cliffs from the west. Into the defile formed by +this overlapping the party filed. I could see them climbing upward for +a few minutes, and then they disappeared from view. When the last of +them had passed from sight, I rose and bent my steps in the direction +of the pass--the same pass toward which Nobs had evidently been leading +me. I went warily as I approached it, for fear the party might have +halted to rest. If they hadn't halted, I had no fear of being +discovered, for I had seen that the Galus marched without point, +flankers or rear guard; and when I reached the pass and saw a narrow, +one-man trail leading upward at a stiff angle, I wished that I were +chief of the Galus for a few weeks. A dozen men could hold off forever +in that narrow pass all the hordes which might be brought up from the +south; yet there it lay entirely unguarded. + +The Galus might be a great people in Caspak; but they were pitifully +inefficient in even the simpler forms of military tactics. I was +surprised that even a man of the Stone Age should be so lacking in +military perspicacity. Du-seen dropped far below par in my estimation +as I saw the slovenly formation of his troop as it passed through an +enemy country and entered the domain of the chief against whom he had +risen in revolt; but Du-seen must have known Jor the chief and known +that Jor would not be waiting for him at the pass. Nevertheless he +took unwarranted chances. With one squad of a home-guard company I +could have conquered Caspak. + +Nobs and I followed to the summit of the pass, and there we saw the +party defiling into the Galu country, the level of which was not, on an +average, over fifty feet below the summit of the cliffs and about a +hundred and fifty feet above the adjacent Kro-lu domain. Immediately +the landscape changed. The trees, the flowers and the shrubs were of a +hardier type, and I realized that at night the Galu blanket might be +almost a necessity. Acacia and eucalyptus predominated among the +trees; yet there were ash and oak and even pine and fir and hemlock. +The tree-life was riotous. The forests were dense and peopled by +enormous trees. From the summit of the cliff I could see forests +rising hundreds of feet above the level upon which I stood, and even at +the distance they were from me I realized that the boles were of +gigantic size. + +At last I had come to the Galu country. Though not conceived in +Caspak, I had indeed come up cor-sva-jo--from the beginning I had come +up through the hideous horrors of the lower Caspakian spheres of +evolution, and I could not but feel something of the elation and pride +which had filled To-mar and So-al when they realized that the call had +come to them and they were about to rise from the estate of Band-lus to +that of Kro-lus. I was glad that I was not batu. + +But where was Ajor? Though my eyes searched the wide landscape before +me, I saw nothing other than the warriors of Du-seen and the beasts of +the fields and the forests. Surrounded by forests, I could see wide +plains dotting the country as far as the eye could reach; but nowhere +was a sign of a small Galu she--the beloved she whom I would have given +my right hand to see. + +Nobs and I were hungry; we had not eaten since the preceding night, and +below us was game--deer, sheep, anything that a hungry hunter might +crave; so down the steep trail we made our way, and then upon my belly +with Nobs crouching low behind me, I crawled toward a small herd of red +deer feeding at the edge of a plain close beside a forest. There was +ample cover, what with solitary trees and dotting bushes so that I +found no difficulty in stalking up wind to within fifty feet of my +quarry--a large, sleek doe unaccompanied by a fawn. Greatly then did I +regret my rifle. Never in my life had I shot an arrow, but I knew how +it was done, and fitting the shaft to my string, I aimed carefully and +let drive. At the same instant I called to Nobs and leaped to my feet. + +The arrow caught the doe full in the side, and in the same moment Nobs +was after her. She turned to flee with the two of us pursuing her, +Nobs with his great fangs bared and I with my short spear poised for a +cast. The balance of the herd sprang quickly away; but the hurt doe +lagged, and in a moment Nobs was beside her and had leaped at her +throat. He had her down when I came up, and I finished her with my +spear. It didn't take me long to have a fire going and a steak +broiling, and while I was preparing for my own feast, Nobs was filling +himself with raw venison. Never have I enjoyed a meal so heartily. + +For two days I searched fruitlessly back and forth from the inland sea +almost to the barrier cliffs for some trace of Ajor, and always I +trended northward; but I saw no sign of any human being, not even the +band of Galu warriors under Du-seen; and then I commenced to have +misgivings. Had Chal-az spoken the truth to me when he said that Ajor +had quit the village of the Kro-lu? Might he not have been acting upon +the orders of Al-tan, in whose savage bosom might have lurked some +small spark of shame that he had attempted to do to death one who had +befriended a Kro-lu warrior--a guest who had brought no harm upon the +Kro-lu race--and thus have sent me out upon a fruitless mission in the +hope that the wild beasts would do what Al-tan hesitated to do? I did +not know; but the more I thought upon it, the more convinced I became +that Ajor had not quitted the Kro-lu village; but if not, what had +brought Du-seen forth without her? There was a puzzler, and once again +I was all at sea. + +On the second day of my experience of the Galu country I came upon a +bunch of as magnificent horses as it has ever been my lot to see. They +were dark bays with blazed faces and perfect surcingles of white about +their barrels. Their forelegs were white to the knees. In height they +stood almost sixteen hands, the mares being a trifle smaller than the +stallions, of which there were three or four in this band of a hundred, +which comprised many colts and half-grown horses. Their markings were +almost identical, indicating a purity of strain that might have +persisted since long ages ago. If I had coveted one of the little +ponies of the Kro-lu country, imagine my state of mind when I came upon +these magnificent creatures! No sooner had I espied them than I +determined to possess one of them; nor did it take me long to select a +beautiful young stallion--a four-year-old, I guessed him. + +The horses were grazing close to the edge of the forest in which Nobs +and I were concealed, while the ground between us and them was dotted +with clumps of flowering brush which offered perfect concealment. The +stallion of my choice grazed with a filly and two yearlings a little +apart from the balance of the herd and nearest to the forest and to me. +At my whispered "Charge!" Nobs flattened himself to the ground, and I +knew that he would not again move until I called him, unless danger +threatened me from the rear. Carefully I crept forward toward my +unsuspecting quarry, coming undetected to the concealment of a bush not +more than twenty feet from him. Here I quietly arranged my noose, +spreading it flat and open upon the ground. + +To step to one side of the bush and throw directly from the ground, +which is the style I am best in, would take but an instant, and in that +instant the stallion would doubtless be under way at top speed in the +opposite direction. Then he would have to wheel about when I surprised +him, and in doing so, he would most certainly rise slightly upon his +hind feet and throw up his head, presenting a perfect target for my +noose as he pivoted. + +Yes, I had it beautifully worked out, and I waited until he should turn +in my direction. At last it became evident that he was doing so, when +apparently without cause, the filly raised her head, neighed and +started off at a trot in the opposite direction, immediately followed, +of course, by the colts and my stallion. It looked for a moment as +though my last hope was blasted; but presently their fright, if fright +it was, passed, and they resumed grazing again a hundred yards farther +on. This time there was no bush within fifty feet of them, and I was +at a loss as to how to get within safe roping-distance. Anywhere under +forty feet I am an excellent roper, at fifty feet I am fair; but over +that I knew it would be a matter of luck if I succeeded in getting my +noose about that beautiful arched neck. + +As I stood debating the question in my mind, I was almost upon the +point of making the attempt at the long throw. I had plenty of rope, +this Galu weapon being fully sixty feet long. How I wished for the +collies from the ranch! At a word they would have circled this little +bunch and driven it straight down to me; and then it flashed into my +mind that Nobs had run with those collies all one summer, that he had +gone down to the pasture with them after the cows every evening and +done his part in driving them back to the milking-barn, and had done it +intelligently; but Nobs had never done the thing alone, and it had been +a year since he had done it at all. However, the chances were more in +favor of my foozling the long throw than that Nobs would fall down in +his part if I gave him the chance. + +Having come to a decision, I had to creep back to Nobs and get him, and +then with him at my heels return to a large bush near the four horses. +Here we could see directly through the bush, and pointing the animals +out to Nobs I whispered: "Fetch 'em, boy!" + +In an instant he was gone, circling wide toward the rear of the quarry. +They caught sight of him almost immediately and broke into a trot away +from him; but when they saw that he was apparently giving them a wide +berth they stopped again, though they stood watching him, with +high-held heads and quivering nostrils. It was a beautiful sight. And +then Nobs turned in behind them and trotted slowly back toward me. He +did not bark, nor come rushing down upon them, and when he had come +closer to them, he proceeded at a walk. The splendid creatures seemed +more curious than fearful, making no effort to escape until Nobs was +quite close to them; then they trotted slowly away, but at right angles. + +And now the fun and trouble commenced. Nobs, of course, attempted to +turn them, and he seemed to have selected the stallion to work upon, +for he paid no attention to the others, having intelligence enough to +know that a lone dog could run his legs off before he could round up +four horses that didn't wish to be rounded up. The stallion, however, +had notions of his own about being headed, and the result was as pretty +a race as one would care to see. Gad, how that horse could run! He +seemed to flatten out and shoot through the air with the very minimum +of exertion, and at his forefoot ran Nobs, doing his best to turn him. +He was barking now, and twice he leaped high against the stallion's +flank; but this cost too much effort and always lost him ground, as +each time he was hurled heels over head by the impact; yet before they +disappeared over a rise in the ground I was sure that Nobs' persistence +was bearing fruit; it seemed to me that the horse was giving way a +trifle to the right. Nobs was between him and the main herd, to which +the yearling and filly had already fled. + +As I stood waiting for Nobs' return, I could not but speculate upon my +chances should I be attacked by some formidable beast. I was some +distance from the forest and armed with weapons in the use of which I +was quite untrained, though I had practiced some with the spear since +leaving the Kro-lu country. I must admit that my thoughts were not +pleasant ones, verging almost upon cowardice, until I chanced to think +of little Ajor alone in this same land and armed only with a knife! I +was immediately filled with shame; but in thinking the matter over +since, I have come to the conclusion that my state of mind was +influenced largely by my approximate nakedness. If you have never +wandered about in broad daylight garbed in a bit of red-deer skin in +inadequate length, you can have no conception of the sensation of +futility that overwhelms one. Clothes, to a man accustomed to wearing +clothes, impart a certain self-confidence; lack of them induces panic. + +But no beast attacked me, though I saw several menacing forms passing +through the dark aisles of the forest. At last I commenced to worry +over Nobs' protracted absence and to fear that something had befallen +him. I was coiling my rope to start out in search of him, when I saw +the stallion leap into view at almost the same spot behind which he had +disappeared, and at his heels ran Nobs. Neither was running so fast or +furiously as when last I had seen them. + +The horse, as he approached me, I could see was laboring hard; yet he +kept gamely to his task, and Nobs, too. The splendid fellow was +driving the quarry straight toward me. I crouched behind my bush and +laid my noose in readiness to throw. As the two approached my +hiding-place, Nobs reduced his speed, and the stallion, evidently only +too glad of the respite, dropped into a trot. It was at this gait that +he passed me; my rope-hand flew forward; the honda, well down, held the +noose open, and the beautiful bay fairly ran his head into it. + +Instantly he wheeled to dash off at right angles. I braced myself with +the rope around my hip and brought him to a sudden stand. Rearing and +struggling, he fought for his liberty while Nobs, panting and with +lolling tongue, came and threw himself down near me. He seemed to know +that his work was done and that he had earned his rest. The stallion +was pretty well spent, and after a few minutes of struggling he stood +with feet far spread, nostrils dilated and eyes wide, watching me as I +edged toward him, taking in the slack of the rope as I advanced. A +dozen times he reared and tried to break away; but always I spoke +soothingly to him and after an hour of effort I succeeded in reaching +his head and stroking his muzzle. Then I gathered a handful of grass +and offered it to him, and always I talked to him in a quiet and +reassuring voice. + +I had expected a battle royal; but on the contrary I found his taming a +matter of comparative ease. Though wild, he was gentle to a degree, +and of such remarkable intelligence that he soon discovered that I had +no intention of harming him. After that, all was easy. Before that +day was done, I had taught him to lead and to stand while I stroked his +head and flanks, and to eat from my hand, and had the satisfaction of +seeing the light of fear die in his large, intelligent eyes. + +The following day I fashioned a hackamore from a piece which I cut from +the end of my long Galu rope, and then I mounted him fully prepared for +a struggle of titanic proportions in which I was none too sure that he +would not come off victor; but he never made the slightest effort to +unseat me, and from then on his education was rapid. No horse ever +learned more quickly the meaning of the rein and the pressure of the +knees. I think he soon learned to love me, and I know that I loved +him; while he and Nobs were the best of pals. I called him Ace. I had +a friend who was once in the French flying-corps, and when Ace let +himself out, he certainly flew. + +I cannot explain to you, nor can you understand, unless you too are a +horseman, the exhilarating feeling of well-being which pervaded me from +the moment that I commenced riding Ace. I was a new man, imbued with a +sense of superiority that led me to feel that I could go forth and +conquer all Caspak single-handed. Now, when I needed meat, I ran it +down on Ace and roped it, and when some great beast with which we could +not cope threatened us, we galloped away to safety; but for the most +part the creatures we met looked upon us in terror, for Ace and I in +combination presented a new and unusual beast beyond their experience +and ken. + +For five days I rode back and forth across the southern end of the Galu +country without seeing a human being; yet all the time I was working +slowly toward the north, for I had determined to comb the territory +thoroughly in search of Ajor; but on the fifth day as I emerged from a +forest, I saw some distance ahead of me a single small figure pursued +by many others. Instantly I recognized the quarry as Ajor. The entire +party was fully a mile away from me, and they were crossing my path at +right angles, Ajor a few hundred yards in advance of those who +followed her. One of her pursuers was far in advance of the others, +and was gaining upon her rapidly. With a word and a pressure of the +knees I sent Ace leaping out into the open, and with Nobs running close +alongside, we raced toward her. + +At first none of them saw us; but as we neared Ajor, the pack behind +the foremost pursuer discovered us and set up such a howl as I never +before have heard. They were all Galus, and I soon recognized the +foremost as Du-seen. He was almost upon Ajor now, and with a sense of +terror such as I had never before experienced, I saw that he ran with +his knife in his hand, and that his intention was to slay rather than +capture. I could not understand it, but I could only urge Ace to +greater speed, and most nobly did the wondrous creature respond to my +demands. If ever a four-footed creature approximated flying, it was +Ace that day. + +Du-seen, intent upon his brutal design, had as yet not noticed us. He +was within a pace of Ajor when Ace and I dashed between them, and I, +leaning down to the left, swept my little barbarian into the hollow of +an arm and up on the withers of my glorious Ace. We had snatched her +from the very clutches of Du-seen, who halted, mystified and raging. +Ajor, too, was mystified, as we had come up from diagonally behind her +so that she had no idea that we were near until she was swung to Ace's +back. The little savage turned with drawn knife to stab me, thinking +that I was some new enemy, when her eyes found my face and she +recognized me. With a little sob she threw her arms about my neck, +gasping: "My Tom! My Tom!" + +And then Ace sank suddenly into thick mud to his belly, and Ajor and I +were thrown far over his head. He had run into one of those numerous +springs which cover Caspak. Sometimes they are little lakes, again but +tiny pools, and often mere quagmires of mud, as was this one overgrown +with lush grasses which effectually hid its treacherous identity. It +is a wonder that Ace did not break a leg, so fast he was going when he +fell; but he didn't, though with four good legs he was unable to wallow +from the mire. Ajor and I had sprawled face down in the covering +grasses and so had not sunk deeply; but when we tried to rise, we found +that there was not footing, and presently we saw that Du-seen and his +followers were coming down upon us. There was no escape. It was +evident that we were doomed. + +"Slay me!" begged Ajor. "Let me die at thy loved hands rather than +beneath the knife of this hateful thing, for he will kill me. He has +sworn to kill me. Last night he captured me, and when later he would +have his way with me, I struck him with my fists and with my knife I +stabbed him, and then I escaped, leaving him raging in pain and +thwarted desire. Today they searched for me and found me; and as I +fled, Du-seen ran after me crying that he would slay me. Kill me, my +Tom, and then fall upon thine own spear, for they will kill you +horribly if they take you alive." + +I couldn't kill her--not at least until the last moment; and I told her +so, and that I loved her, and that until death came, I would live and +fight for her. + +Nobs had followed us into the bog and had done fairly well at first, +but when he neared us he too sank to his belly and could only flounder +about. We were in this predicament when Du-seen and his followers +approached the edge of the horrible swamp. I saw that Al-tan was with +him and many other Kro-lu warriors. The alliance against Jor the chief +had, therefore, been consummated, and this horde was already marching +upon the Galu city. I sighed as I thought how close I had been to +saving not only Ajor but her father and his people from defeat and +death. + +Beyond the swamp was a dense wood. Could we have reached this, we +would have been safe; but it might as well have been a hundred miles +away as a hundred yards across that hidden lake of sticky mud. Upon +the edge of the swamp Du-seen and his horde halted to revile us. They +could not reach us with their hands; but at a command from Du-seen they +fitted arrows to their bows, and I saw that the end had come. Ajor +huddled close to me, and I took her in my arms. "I love you, Tom," she +said, "only you." Tears came to my eyes then, not tears of self-pity +for my predicament, but tears from a heart filled with a great love--a +heart that sees the sun of its life and its love setting even as it +rises. + +The renegade Galus and their Kro-lu allies stood waiting for the word +from Du-seen that would launch that barbed avalanche of death upon us, +when there broke from the wood beyond the swamp the sweetest music that +ever fell upon the ears of man--the sharp staccato of at least two +score rifles fired rapidly at will. Down went the Galu and Kro-lu +warriors like tenpins before that deadly fusillade. + +What could it mean? To me it meant but one thing, and that was that +Hollis and Short and the others had scaled the cliffs and made their +way north to the Galu country upon the opposite side of the island in +time to save Ajor and me from almost certain death. I didn't have to +have an introduction to them to know that the men who held those rifles +were the men of my own party; and when, a few minutes later, they came +forth from their concealment, my eyes verified my hopes. There they +were, every man-jack of them; and with them were a thousand straight, +sleek warriors of the Galu race; and ahead of the others came two men +in the garb of Galus. Each was tall and straight and wonderfully +muscled; yet they differed as Ace might differ from a perfect specimen +of another species. As they approached the mire, Ajor held forth her +arms and cried, "Jor, my chief! My father!" and the elder of the two +rushed in knee-deep to rescue her, and then the other came close and +looked into my face, and his eyes went wide, and mine too, and I cried: +"Bowen! For heaven's sake, Bowen Tyler!" + +It was he. My search was ended. Around me were all my company and the +man we had searched a new world to find. They cut saplings from the +forest and laid a road into the swamp before they could get us all out, +and then we marched back to the city of Jor the Galu chief, and there +was great rejoicing when Ajor came home again mounted upon the glossy +back of the stallion Ace. + +Tyler and Hollis and Short and all the rest of us Americans nearly +worked our jaws loose on the march back to the village, and for days +afterward we kept it up. They told me how they had crossed the barrier +cliffs in five days, working twenty-four hours a day in three +eight-hour shifts with two reliefs to each shift alternating +half-hourly. Two men with electric drills driven from the dynamos +aboard the _Toreador_ drilled two holes four feet apart in the face of +the cliff and in the same horizontal planes. The holes slanted +slightly downward. Into these holes the iron rods brought as a part of +our equipment and for just this purpose were inserted, extending about +a foot beyond the face of the rock, across these two rods a plank was +laid, and then the next shift, mounting to the new level, bored two +more holes five feet above the new platform, and so on. + +During the nights the searchlights from the _Toreador_ were kept playing +upon the cliff at the point where the drills were working, and at the +rate of ten feet an hour the summit was reached upon the fifth day. +Ropes were lowered, blocks lashed to trees at the top, and crude +elevators rigged, so that by the night of the fifth day the entire +party, with the exception of the few men needed to man the _Toreador_, +were within Caspak with an abundance of arms, ammunition and equipment. + +From then on, they fought their way north in search of me, after a vain +and perilous effort to enter the hideous reptile-infested country to +the south. Owing to the number of guns among them, they had not lost a +man; but their path was strewn with the dead creatures they had been +forced to slay to win their way to the north end of the island, where +they had found Bowen and his bride among the Galus of Jor. + +The reunion between Bowen and Nobs was marked by a frantic display upon +Nobs' part, which almost stripped Bowen of the scanty attire that the +Galu custom had vouchsafed him. When we arrived at the Galu city, Lys +La Rue was waiting to welcome us. She was Mrs. Tyler now, as the +master of the _Toreador_ had married them the very day that the +search-party had found them, though neither Lys nor Bowen would admit +that any civil or religious ceremony could have rendered more sacred +the bonds with which God had united them. + +Neither Bowen nor the party from the _Toreador_ had seen any sign of +Bradley and his party. They had been so long lost now that any hopes +for them must be definitely abandoned. The Galus had heard rumors of +them, as had the Western Kro-lu and Band-lu; but none had seen aught of +them since they had left Fort Dinosaur months since. + +We rested in Jor's village for a fortnight while we prepared for the +southward journey to the point where the _Toreador_ was to lie off shore +in wait for us. During these two weeks Chal-az came up from the Kro-lu +country, now a full-fledged Galu. He told us that the remnants of +Al-tan's party had been slain when they attempted to re-enter Kro-lu. +Chal-az had been made chief, and when he rose, had left the tribe under +a new leader whom all respected. + +Nobs stuck close to Bowen; but Ace and Ajor and I went out upon many +long rides through the beautiful north Galu country. Chal-az had +brought my arms and ammunition up from Kro-lu with him; but my clothes +were gone; nor did I miss them once I became accustomed to the free +attire of the Galu. + +At last came the time for our departure; upon the following morning we +were to set out toward the south and the _Toreador_ and dear old +California. I had asked Ajor to go with us; but Jor her father had +refused to listen to the suggestion. No pleas could swerve him from +his decision: Ajor, the cos-ata-lo, from whom might spring a new and +greater Caspakian race, could not be spared. I might have any other +she among the Galus; but Ajor--no! + +The poor child was heartbroken; and as for me, I was slowly realizing +the hold that Ajor had upon my heart and wondered how I should get +along without her. As I held her in my arms that last night, I tried +to imagine what life would be like without her, for at last there had +come to me the realization that I loved her--loved my little barbarian; +and as I finally tore myself away and went to my own hut to snatch a +few hours' sleep before we set off upon our long journey on the morrow, +I consoled myself with the thought that time would heal the wound and +that back in my native land I should find a mate who would be all and +more to me than little Ajor could ever be--a woman of my own race and +my own culture. + +Morning came more quickly than I could have wished. I rose and +breakfasted, but saw nothing of Ajor. It was best, I thought, that I +go thus without the harrowing pangs of a last farewell. The party +formed for the march, an escort of Galu warriors ready to accompany us. +I could not even bear to go to Ace's corral and bid him farewell. The +night before, I had given him to Ajor, and now in my mind the two +seemed inseparable. + +And so we marched away, down the street flanked with its stone houses +and out through the wide gateway in the stone wall which surrounds the +city and on across the clearing toward the forest through which we must +pass to reach the northern boundary of Galu, beyond which we would turn +south. At the edge of the forest I cast a backward glance at the city +which held my heart, and beside the massive gateway I saw that which +brought me to a sudden halt. It was a little figure leaning against +one of the great upright posts upon which the gates swing--a crumpled +little figure; and even at this distance I could see its shoulders +heave to the sobs that racked it. It was the last straw. + +Bowen was near me. "Good-bye old man," I said. "I'm going back." + +He looked at me in surprise. "Good-bye, old man," he said, and grasped +my hand. "I thought you'd do it in the end." + +And then I went back and took Ajor in my arms and kissed the tears from +her eyes and a smile to her lips while together we watched the last of +the Americans disappear into the forest. + + + + + +[Transcriber's note: I have made the following changes to the text: + + PAGE LINE ORIGINAL CHANGED TO + + 75 15 later latter + 108 14 in is + 123 24 the he + 131 13 plans planes + 131 28 new few + 132 24 Donosaur Dinosaur] + + + + + + + + + +End of the Project Gutenberg EBook of The People that Time Forgot, by +Edgar Rice Burroughs + +*** END OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE PEOPLE THAT TIME FORGOT *** + +***** This file should be named 552.txt or 552.zip ***** +This and all associated files of various formats will be found in: + https://www.gutenberg.org/5/5/552/ + +Produced by Judith Boss. 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FOR PUBLIC DOMAIN ETEXTS*Ver.04.29.93*END* + + + + + +The People That Time Forgot + +by Edgar Rice Burroughs + + + + + +Chapter I + +I am forced to admit that even though I had traveled a long +distance to place Bowen Tyler's manuscript in the hands of his +father, I was still a trifle skeptical as to its sincerity, +since I could not but recall that it had not been many years +since Bowen had been one of the most notorious practical jokers +of his alma mater. The truth was that as I sat in the Tyler +library at Santa Monica I commenced to feel a trifle foolish +and to wish that I had merely forwarded the manuscript by +express instead of bearing it personally, for I confess that I +do not enjoy being laughed at. I have a well-developed sense +of humor--when the joke is not on me. + +Mr. Tyler, Sr., was expected almost hourly. The last steamer +in from Honolulu had brought information of the date of the +expected sailing of his yacht Toreador, which was now +twenty-four hours overdue. Mr. Tyler's assistant secretary, +who had been left at home, assured me that there was no doubt +but that the Toreador had sailed as promised, since he knew +his employer well enough to be positive that nothing short of +an act of God would prevent his doing what he had planned to do. +I was also aware of the fact that the sending apparatus of +the Toreador's wireless equipment was sealed, and that it +would only be used in event of dire necessity. There was, +therefore, nothing to do but wait, and we waited. + +We discussed the manuscript and hazarded guesses concerning it +and the strange events it narrated. The torpedoing of the +liner upon which Bowen J. Tyler, Jr., had taken passage for +France to join the American Ambulance was a well-known fact, +and I had further substantiated by wire to the New York office +of the owners, that a Miss La Rue had been booked for passage. +Further, neither she nor Bowen had been mentioned among the list +of survivors; nor had the body of either of them been recovered. + +Their rescue by the English tug was entirely probable; the +capture of the enemy U-33 by the tug's crew was not beyond +the range of possibility; and their adventures during the +perilous cruise which the treachery and deceit of Benson +extended until they found themselves in the waters of the far +South Pacific with depleted stores and poisoned water-casks, +while bordering upon the fantastic, appeared logical enough as +narrated, event by event, in the manuscript. + +Caprona has always been considered a more or less mythical +land, though it is vouched for by an eminent navigator of the +eighteenth century; but Bowen's narrative made it seem very real, +however many miles of trackless ocean lay between us and it. +Yes, the narrative had us guessing. We were agreed that it was +most improbable; but neither of us could say that anything which +it contained was beyond the range of possibility. The weird +flora and fauna of Caspak were as possible under the thick, +warm atmospheric conditions of the super-heated crater as +they were in the Mesozoic era under almost exactly similar +conditions, which were then probably world-wide. The assistant +secretary had heard of Caproni and his discoveries, but admitted +that he never had taken much stock in the one nor the other. +We were agreed that the one statement most difficult of +explanation was that which reported the entire absence of human +young among the various tribes which Tyler had had intercourse. +This was the one irreconcilable statement of the manuscript. +A world of adults! It was impossible. + +We speculated upon the probable fate of Bradley and his party +of English sailors. Tyler had found the graves of two of them; +how many more might have perished! And Miss La Rue--could a +young girl long have survived the horrors of Caspak after +having been separated from all of her own kind? The assistant +secretary wondered if Nobs still was with her, and then we both +smiled at this tacit acceptance of the truth of the whole +uncanny tale: + +"I suppose I'm a fool," remarked the assistant secretary; "but +by George, I can't help believing it, and I can see that girl +now, with the big Airedale at her side protecting her from the +terrors of a million years ago. I can visualize the entire +scene--the apelike Grimaldi men huddled in their filthy caves; +the huge pterodactyls soaring through the heavy air upon their +bat-like wings; the mighty dinosaurs moving their clumsy hulks +beneath the dark shadows of preglacial forests--the dragons +which we considered myths until science taught us that they +were the true recollections of the first man, handed down +through countless ages by word of mouth from father to son out +of the unrecorded dawn of humanity." + +"It is stupendous--if true," I replied. "And to think that +possibly they are still there--Tyler and Miss La +Rue--surrounded by hideous dangers, and that possibly Bradley +still lives, and some of his party! I can't help hoping all +the time that Bowen and the girl have found the others; the +last Bowen knew of them, there were six left, all told--the +mate Bradley, the engineer Olson, and Wilson, Whitely, Brady +and Sinclair. There might be some hope for them if they could +join forces; but separated, I'm afraid they couldn't last long." + +"If only they hadn't let the German prisoners capture the U-33! +Bowen should have had better judgment than to have trusted them +at all. The chances are von Schoenvorts succeeded in getting +safely back to Kiel and is strutting around with an Iron Cross +this very minute. With a large supply of oil from the wells +they discovered in Caspak, with plenty of water and ample +provisions, there is no reason why they couldn't have +negotiated the submerged tunnel beneath the barrier cliffs +and made good their escape." + +"I don't like 'em," said the assistant secretary; "but +sometimes you got to hand it to 'em." + +"Yes," I growled, "and there's nothing I'd enjoy more than +handing it to them!" And then the telephone-bell rang. + +The assistant secretary answered, and as I watched him, I saw +his jaw drop and his face go white. "My God!" he exclaimed as +he hung up the receiver as one in a trance. "It can't be!" + +"What?" I asked. + +"Mr. Tyler is dead," he answered in a dull voice. "He died at +sea, suddenly, yesterday." + +The next ten days were occupied in burying Mr. Bowen J. Tyler, Sr., +and arranging plans for the succor of his son. Mr. Tom Billings, +the late Mr. Tyler's secretary, did it all. He is force, energy, +initiative and good judgment combined and personified. I never +have beheld a more dynamic young man. He handled lawyers, courts +and executors as a sculptor handles his modeling clay. He formed, +fashioned and forced them to his will. He had been a classmate +of Bowen Tyler at college, and a fraternity brother, and before, +that he had been an impoverished and improvident cow-puncher +on one of the great Tyler ranches. Tyler, Sr., had picked him +out of thousands of employees and made him; or rather Tyler had +given him the opportunity, and then Billings had made himself. +Tyler, Jr., as good a judge of men as his father, had taken him +into his friendship, and between the two of them they had turned +out a man who would have died for a Tyler as quickly as he would +have for his flag. Yet there was none of the sycophant or fawner +in Billings; ordinarily I do not wax enthusiastic about men, but +this man Billings comes as close to my conception of what a +regular man should be as any I have ever met. I venture to say +that before Bowen J. Tyler sent him to college he had never +heard the word ethics, and yet I am equally sure that in +all his life he never has transgressed a single tenet of the +code of ethics of an American gentleman. + +Ten days after they brought Mr. Tyler's body off the Toreador, +we steamed out into the Pacific in search of Caprona. There were +forty in the party, including the master and crew of the +Toreador; and Billings the indomitable was in command. We had +a long and uninteresting search for Caprona, for the old map +upon which the assistant secretary had finally located it was +most inaccurate. When its grim walls finally rose out of the +ocean's mists before us, we were so far south that it was a +question as to whether we were in the South Pacific or +the Antarctic. Bergs were numerous, and it was very cold. + +All during the trip Billings had steadfastly evaded questions +as to how we were to enter Caspak after we had found Caprona. +Bowen Tyler's manuscript had made it perfectly evident to all +that the subterranean outlet of the Caspakian River was the +only means of ingress or egress to the crater world beyond the +impregnable cliffs. Tyler's party had been able to navigate +this channel because their craft had been a submarine; but the +Toreador could as easily have flown over the cliffs as +sailed under them. Jimmy Hollis and Colin Short whiled away +many an hour inventing schemes for surmounting the obstacle +presented by the barrier cliffs, and making ridiculous wagers +as to which one Tom Billings had in mind; but immediately we +were all assured that we had raised Caprona, Billings called +us together. + +"There was no use in talking about these things," he said, +"until we found the island. At best it can be but conjecture on +our part until we have been able to scrutinize the coast closely. +Each of us has formed a mental picture of the Capronian seacoast +from Bowen's manuscript, and it is not likely that any two of +these pictures resemble each other, or that any of them resemble +the coast as we shall presently find it. I have in view three +plans for scaling the cliffs, and the means for carrying out +each is in the hold. There is an electric drill with plenty +of waterproof cable to reach from the ship's dynamos to the +cliff-top when the Toreador is anchored at a safe distance +from shore, and there is sufficient half-inch iron rod to build +a ladder from the base to the top of the cliff. It would be a +long, arduous and dangerous work to bore the holes and insert +the rungs of the ladder from the bottom upward; yet it can be done. + +"I also have a life-saving mortar with which we might be able +to throw a line over the summit of the cliffs; but this plan +would necessitate one of us climbing to the top with the +chances more than even that the line would cut at the summit, +or the hooks at the upper end would slip. + +"My third plan seems to me the most feasible. You all saw a +number of large, heavy boxes lowered into the hold before +we sailed. I know you did, because you asked me what they +contained and commented upon the large letter 'H' which was +painted upon each box. These boxes contain the various parts +of a hydro-aeroplane. I purpose assembling this upon the strip +of beach described in Bowen's manuscript--the beach where he +found the dead body of the apelike man--provided there is +sufficient space above high water; otherwise we shall have to +assemble it on deck and lower it over the side. After it is +assembled, I shall carry tackle and ropes to the cliff-top, and +then it will be comparatively simple to hoist the search-party +and its supplies in safety. Or I can make a sufficient number +of trips to land the entire party in the valley beyond the +barrier; all will depend, of course, upon what my first +reconnaissance reveals." + +That afternoon we steamed slowly along the face of Caprona's +towering barrier. + +"You see now," remarked Billings as we craned our necks to scan +the summit thousands of feet above us, "how futile it would +have been to waste our time in working out details of a plan to +surmount those." And he jerked his thumb toward the cliffs. +"It would take weeks, possibly months, to construct a ladder +to the top. I had no conception of their formidable height. +Our mortar would not carry a line halfway to the crest of the +lowest point. There is no use discussing any plan other than +the hydro-aeroplane. We'll find the beach and get busy." + +Late the following morning the lookout announced that he could +discern surf about a mile ahead; and as we approached, we all +saw the line of breakers broken by a long sweep of rolling surf +upon a narrow beach. The launch was lowered, and five of us +made a landing, getting a good ducking in the ice-cold waters +in the doing of it; but we were rewarded by the finding of the +clean-picked bones of what might have been the skeleton of a +high order of ape or a very low order of man, lying close to +the base of the cliff. Billings was satisfied, as were the +rest of us, that this was the beach mentioned by Bowen, and we +further found that there was ample room to assemble the +sea-plane. + +Billings, having arrived at a decision, lost no time in acting, +with the result that before mid-afternoon we had landed all the +large boxes marked "H" upon the beach, and were busily +engaged in opening them. Two days later the plane was +assembled and tuned. We loaded tackles and ropes, water, food +and ammunition in it, and then we each implored Billings to let +us be the one to accompany him. But he would take no one. +That was Billings; if there was any especially difficult or +dangerous work to be done, that one man could do, Billings +always did it himself. If he needed assistance, he never +called for volunteers--just selected the man or men he +considered best qualified for the duty. He said that he +considered the principles underlying all volunteer service +fundamentally wrong, and that it seemed to him that calling +for volunteers reflected upon the courage and loyalty of the +entire command. + +We rolled the plane down to the water's edge, and Billings +mounted the pilot's seat. There was a moment's delay as he +assured himself that he had everything necessary. Jimmy Hollis +went over his armament and ammunition to see that nothing had +been omitted. Besides pistol and rifle, there was the +machine-gun mounted in front of him on the plane, and +ammunition for all three. Bowen's account of the terrors of +Caspak had impressed us all with the necessity for proper means +of defense. + +At last all was ready. The motor was started, and we pushed +the plane out into the surf. A moment later, and she was +skimming seaward. Gently she rose from the surface of the +water, executed a wide spiral as she mounted rapidly, +circled once far above us and then disappeared over the crest +of the cliffs. We all stood silent and expectant, our eyes +glued upon the towering summit above us. Hollis, who was now +in command, consulted his wrist-watch at frequent intervals. + +"Gad," exclaimed Short, "we ought to be hearing from him pretty soon!" + +Hollis laughed nervously. "He's been gone only ten minutes," +he announced. + +"Seems like an hour," snapped Short. "What's that? Did you +hear that? He's firing! It's the machine-gun! Oh, Lord; and +here we are as helpless as a lot of old ladies ten thousand +miles away! We can't do a thing. We don't know what's happening. +Why didn't he let one of us go with him?" + +Yes, it was the machine-gun. We would hear it distinctly for +at least a minute. Then came silence. That was two weeks ago. +We have had no sign nor signal from Tom Billings since. + + + +Chapter 2 + +I'll never forget my first impressions of Caspak as I circled +in, high over the surrounding cliffs. From the plane I looked +down through a mist upon the blurred landscape beneath me. +The hot, humid atmosphere of Caspak condenses as it is fanned +by the cold Antarctic air-currents which sweep across the +crater's top, sending a tenuous ribbon of vapor far out across +the Pacific. Through this the picture gave one the suggestion +of a colossal impressionistic canvas in greens and browns and +scarlets and yellows surrounding the deep blue of the inland +sea--just blobs of color taking form through the tumbling mist. + +I dived close to the cliffs and skirted them for several miles +without finding the least indication of a suitable landing-place; +and then I swung back at a lower level, looking for a clearing +close to the bottom of the mighty escarpment; but I could find +none of sufficient area to insure safety. I was flying pretty +low by this time, not only looking for landing places but watching +the myriad life beneath me. I was down pretty well toward the +south end of the island, where an arm of the lake reaches far +inland, and I could see the surface of the water literally +black with creatures of some sort. I was too far up to recognize +individuals, but the general impression was of a vast army of +amphibious monsters. The land was almost equally alive with +crawling, leaping, running, flying things. It was one of the +latter which nearly did for me while my attention was fixed +upon the weird scene below. + +The first intimation I had of it was the sudden blotting out of +the sunlight from above, and as I glanced quickly up, I saw a +most terrific creature swooping down upon me. It must have +been fully eighty feet long from the end of its long, hideous +beak to the tip of its thick, short tail, with an equal spread +of wings. It was coming straight for me and hissing frightfully-- +I could hear it above the whir of the propeller. It was coming +straight down toward the muzzle of the machine-gun and I let it +have it right in the breast; but still it came for me, so that +I had to dive and turn, though I was dangerously close to earth. + +The thing didn't miss me by a dozen feet, and when I rose, it +wheeled and followed me, but only to the cooler air close to +the level of the cliff-tops; there it turned again and dropped. +Something--man's natural love of battle and the chase, I presume-- +impelled me to pursue it, and so I too circled and dived. +The moment I came down into the warm atmosphere of Caspak, the +creature came for me again, rising above me so that it might +swoop down upon me. Nothing could better have suited my armament, +since my machine-gun was pointed upward at an angle of about degrees +and could not be either depressed or elevated by the pilot. +If I had brought someone along with me, we could have raked the +great reptile from almost any position, but as the creature's +mode of attack was always from above, he always found me ready +with a hail of bullets. The battle must have lasted a minute +or more before the thing suddenly turned completely over in the +air and fell to the ground. + +Bowen and I roomed together at college, and I learned a lot +from him outside my regular course. He was a pretty good +scholar despite his love of fun, and his particular hobby +was paleontology. He used to tell me about the various forms +of animal and vegetable life which had covered the globe during +former eras, and so I was pretty well acquainted with the +fishes, amphibians, reptiles, and mammals of paleolithic times. +I knew that the thing that had attacked me was some sort of +pterodactyl which should have been extinct millions of years ago. +It was all that I needed to realize that Bowen had exaggerated +nothing in his manuscript. + +Having disposed of my first foe, I set myself once more to +search for a landing-place near to the base of the cliffs +beyond which my party awaited me. I knew how anxious they +would be for word from me, and I was equally anxious to relieve +their minds and also to get them and our supplies well within +Caspak, so that we might set off about our business of finding +and rescuing Bowen Tyler; but the pterodactyl's carcass had +scarcely fallen before I was surrounded by at least a dozen of +the hideous things, some large, some small, but all bent upon +my destruction. I could not cope with them all, and so I rose +rapidly from among them to the cooler strata wherein they dared +not follow; and then I recalled that Bowen's narrative +distinctly indicated that the farther north one traveled in +Caspak, the fewer were the terrible reptiles which rendered +human life impossible at the southern end of the island. + +There seemed nothing now but to search out a more northerly +landing-place and then return to the Toreador and transport +my companions, two by two, over the cliffs and deposit them at +the rendezvous. As I flew north, the temptation to explore +overcame me. I knew that I could easily cover Caspak and +return to the beach with less petrol than I had in my tanks; +and there was the hope, too, that I might find Bowen or some of +his party. The broad expanse of the inland sea lured me out +over its waters, and as I crossed, I saw at either extremity of +the great body of water an island--one to the south and one to +the north; but I did not alter my course to examine either +closely, leaving that to a later time. + +The further shore of the sea revealed a much narrower strip of +land between the cliffs and the water than upon the western +side; but it was a hillier and more open country. There were +splendid landing-places, and in the distance, toward the north, +I thought I descried a village; but of that I was not positive. +However, as I approached the land, I saw a number of human figures +apparently pursuing one who fled across a broad expanse of meadow. +As I dropped lower to have a better look at these people, they +caught the whirring of my propellers and looked aloft. They paused +an instant--pursuers and pursued; and then they broke and raced +for the shelter of the nearest wood. Almost instantaneously a +huge bulk swooped down upon me, and as I looked up, I realized +that there were flying reptiles even in this part of Caspak. +The creature dived for my right wing so quickly that nothing but +a sheer drop could have saved me. I was already close to the +ground, so that my maneuver was extremely dangerous; but I was +in a fair way of making it successfully when I saw that I was +too closely approaching a large tree. My effort to dodge the +tree and the pterodactyl at the same time resulted disastrously. +One wing touched an upper branch; the plane tipped and swung +around, and then, out of control, dashed into the branches of +the tree, where it came to rest, battered and torn, forty feet +above the ground. + +Hissing loudly, the huge reptile swept close above the tree in +which my plane had lodged, circled twice over me and then +flapped away toward the south. As I guessed then and was to +learn later, forests are the surest sanctuary from these +hideous creatures, which, with their enormous spread of wing +and their great weight, are as much out of place among trees +as is a seaplane. + +For a minute or so I clung there to my battered flyer, now +useless beyond redemption, my brain numbed by the frightful +catastrophe that had befallen me. All my plans for the succor +of Bowen and Miss La Rue had depended upon this craft, and in a +few brief minutes my own selfish love of adventure had wrecked +their hopes and mine. And what effect it might have upon the +future of the balance of the rescuing expedition I could not +even guess. Their lives, too, might be sacrificed to my +suicidal foolishness. That I was doomed seemed inevitable; but +I can honestly say that the fate of my friends concerned me +more greatly than did my own. + +Beyond the barrier cliffs my party was even now nervously +awaiting my return. Presently apprehension and fear would +claim them--and they would never know! They would attempt to +scale the cliffs--of that I was sure; but I was not so positive +that they would succeed; and after a while they would turn +back, what there were left of them, and go sadly and mournfully +upon their return journey to home. Home! I set my jaws and +tried to forget the word, for I knew that I should never again +see home. + +And what of Bowen and his girl? I had doomed them too. They would +never even know that an attempt had been made to rescue them. +If they still lived, they might some day come upon the ruined +remnants of this great plane hanging in its lofty sepulcher and +hazard vain guesses and be filled with wonder; but they would +never know; and I could not but be glad that they would not +know that Tom Billings had sealed their death-warrants by his +criminal selfishness. + +All these useless regrets were getting me in a bad way; but at +last I shook myself and tried to put such things out of my mind +and take hold of conditions as they existed and do my level +best to wrest victory from defeat. I was badly shaken up and +bruised, but considered myself mighty lucky to escape with my life. +The plane hung at a precarious angle, so that it was with +difficulty and considerable danger that I climbed from it into +the tree and then to the ground. + +My predicament was grave. Between me and my friends lay an +inland sea fully sixty miles wide at this point and an +estimated land-distance of some three hundred miles around the +northern end of the sea, through such hideous dangers as I am +perfectly free to admit had me pretty well buffaloed. I had +seen quite enough of Caspak this day to assure me that Bowen +had in no way exaggerated its perils. As a matter of fact, I +am inclined to believe that he had become so accustomed to them +before he started upon his manuscript that he rather slighted them. +As I stood there beneath that tree--a tree which should have been +part of a coal-bed countless ages since--and looked out across +a sea teeming with frightful life--life which should have been +fossil before God conceived of Adam--I would not have given a +minim of stale beer for my chances of ever seeing my friends or +the outside world again; yet then and there I swore to fight my +way as far through this hideous land as circumstances would permit. +I had plenty of ammunition, an automatic pistol and a heavy rifle-- +the latter one of twenty added to our equipment on the strength of +Bowen's description of the huge beasts of prey which ravaged Caspak. +My greatest danger lay in the hideous reptilia whose low nervous +organizations permitted their carnivorous instincts to function +for several minutes after they had ceased to live. + +But to these things I gave less thought than to the sudden +frustration of all our plans. With the bitterest of thoughts I +condemned myself for the foolish weakness that had permitted me +to be drawn from the main object of my flight into premature +and useless exploration. It seemed to me then that I must be +totally eliminated from further search for Bowen, since, as I +estimated it, the three hundred miles of Caspakian territory I +must traverse to reach the base of the cliffs beyond which my +party awaited me were practically impassable for a single +individual unaccustomed to Caspakian life and ignorant of all +that lay before him. Yet I could not give up hope entirely. +My duty lay clear before me; I must follow it while life +remained to me, and so I set forth toward the north. + +The country through which I took my way was as lovely as it was +unusual--I had almost said unearthly, for the plants, the +trees, the blooms were not of the earth that I knew. They were +larger, the colors more brilliant and the shapes startling, +some almost to grotesqueness, though even such added to the +charm and romance of the landscape as the giant cacti render +weirdly beautiful the waste spots of the sad Mohave. And over +all the sun shone huge and round and red, a monster sun above a +monstrous world, its light dispersed by the humid air of +Caspak--the warm, moist air which lies sluggish upon the breast +of this great mother of life, Nature's mightiest incubator. + +All about me, in every direction, was life. It moved through +the tree-tops and among the boles; it displayed itself in +widening and intermingling circles upon the bosom of the sea; +it leaped from the depths; I could hear it in a dense wood at +my right, the murmur of it rising and falling in ceaseless +volumes of sound, riven at intervals by a horrid scream or a +thunderous roar which shook the earth; and always I was haunted +by that inexplicable sensation that unseen eyes were watching +me, that soundless feet dogged my trail. I am neither nervous +nor highstrung; but the burden of responsibility upon me +weighed heavily, so that I was more cautious than is my wont. +I turned often to right and left and rear lest I be surprised, +and I carried my rifle at the ready in my hand. Once I could +have sworn that among the many creatures dimly perceived amidst +the shadows of the wood I saw a human figure dart from one +cover to another, but I could not be sure. + +For the most part I skirted the wood, making occasional detours +rather than enter those forbidding depths of gloom, though many +times I was forced to pass through arms of the forest which +extended to the very shore of the inland sea. There was so +sinister a suggestion in the uncouth sounds and the vague +glimpses of moving things within the forest, of the menace of +strange beasts and possibly still stranger men, that I always +breathed more freely when I had passed once more into open country. + +I had traveled northward for perhaps an hour, still haunted by +the conviction that I was being stalked by some creature which +kept always hidden among the trees and shrubbery to my right +and a little to my rear, when for the hundredth time I was +attracted by a sound from that direction, and turning, saw some +animal running rapidly through the forest toward me. There was +no longer any effort on its part at concealment; it came on +through the underbrush swiftly, and I was confident that +whatever it was, it had finally gathered the courage to charge +me boldly. Before it finally broke into plain view, I became +aware that it was not alone, for a few yards in its rear a +second thing thrashed through the leafy jungle. Evidently I +was to be attacked in force by a pair of hunting beasts or men. + +And then through the last clump of waving ferns broke the +figure of the foremost creature, which came leaping toward me +on light feet as I stood with my rifle to my shoulder covering +the point at which I had expected it would emerge. I must have +looked foolish indeed if my surprise and consternation were in +any way reflected upon my countenance as I lowered my rifle and +gazed incredulous at the lithe figure of the girl speeding +swiftly in my direction. But I did not have long to stand thus +with lowered weapon, for as she came, I saw her cast an +affrighted glance over her shoulder, and at the same moment +there broke from the jungle at the same spot at which I had +seen her, the hugest cat I had ever looked upon. + +At first I took the beast for a saber-tooth tiger, as it was +quite the most fearsome-appearing beast one could imagine; but +it was not that dread monster of the past, though quite +formidable enough to satisfy the most fastidious thrill-hunter. +On it came, grim and terrible, its baleful eyes glaring above +its distended jaws, its lips curled in a frightful snarl which +exposed a whole mouthful of formidable teeth. At sight of me +it had abandoned its impetuous rush and was now sneaking slowly +toward us; while the girl, a long knife in her hand, took her +stand bravely at my left and a little to my rear. She had +called something to me in a strange tongue as she raced toward +me, and now she spoke again; but what she said I could not +then, of course, know--only that her tones were sweet, well +modulated and free from any suggestion of panic. + +Facing the huge cat, which I now saw was an enormous panther, I +waited until I could place a shot where I felt it would do the +most good, for at best a frontal shot at any of the large +carnivora is a ticklish matter. I had some advantage in that +the beast was not charging; its head was held low and its back +exposed; and so at forty yards I took careful aim at its spine +at the junction of neck and shoulders. But at the same +instant, as though sensing my intention, the great creature +lifted its head and leaped forward in full charge. To fire at +that sloping forehead I knew would be worse than useless, and +so I quickly shifted my aim and pulled the trigger, hoping +against hope that the soft-nosed bullet and the heavy charge of +powder would have sufficient stopping effect to give me time to +place a second shot. + +In answer to the report of the rifle I had the satisfaction of +seeing the brute spring into the air, turning a complete +somersault; but it was up again almost instantly, though in the +brief second that it took it to scramble to its feet and get +its bearings, it exposed its left side fully toward me, and a +second bullet went crashing through its heart. Down it went +for the second time--and then up and at me. The vitality of +these creatures of Caspak is one of the marvelous features of +this strange world and bespeaks the low nervous organization of +the old paleolithic life which has been so long extinct in +other portions of the world. + +I put a third bullet into the beast at three paces, and then I +thought that I was done for; but it rolled over and stopped at +my feet, stone dead. I found that my second bullet had torn +its heart almost completely away, and yet it had lived to +charge ferociously upon me, and but for my third shot would +doubtless have slain me before it finally expired--or as Bowen +Tyler so quaintly puts it, before it knew that it was dead. + +With the panther quite evidently conscious of the fact that +dissolution had overtaken it, I turned toward the girl, who was +regarding me with evident admiration and not a little awe, +though I must admit that my rifle claimed quite as much of her +attention as did I. She was quite the most wonderful animal +that I have ever looked upon, and what few of her charms her +apparel hid, it quite effectively succeeded in accentuating. +A bit of soft, undressed leather was caught over her left +shoulder and beneath her right breast, falling upon her left +side to her hip and upon the right to a metal band which +encircled her leg above the knee and to which the lowest point +of the hide was attached. About her waist was a loose leather +belt, to the center of which was attached the scabbard +belonging to her knife. There was a single armlet between her +right shoulder and elbow, and a series of them covered her left +forearm from elbow to wrist. These, I learned later, answered +the purpose of a shield against knife attack when the left arm +is raised in guard across the breast or face. + +Her masses of heavy hair were held in place by a broad metal +band which bore a large triangular ornament directly in the +center of her forehead. This ornament appeared to be a huge +turquoise, while the metal of all her ornaments was beaten, +virgin gold, inlaid in intricate design with bits of +mother-of-pearl and tiny pieces of stone of various colors. +From the left shoulder depended a leopard's tail, while her +feet were shod with sturdy little sandals. The knife was her +only weapon. Its blade was of iron, the grip was wound with +hide and protected by a guard of three out-bowing strips of +flat iron, and upon the top of the hilt was a knob of gold. + +I took in much of this in the few seconds during which we stood +facing each other, and I also observed another salient feature +of her appearance: she was frightfully dirty! Her face and +limbs and garment were streaked with mud and perspiration, and +yet even so, I felt that I had never looked upon so perfect and +beautiful a creature as she. Her figure beggars description, +and equally so, her face. Were I one of these writer-fellows, +I should probably say that her features were Grecian, but being +neither a writer nor a poet I can do her greater justice by +saying that she combined all of the finest lines that one sees +in the typical American girl's face rather than the pronounced +sheeplike physiognomy of the Greek goddess. No, even the dirt +couldn't hide that fact; she was beautiful beyond compare. + +As we stood looking at each other, a slow smile came to her +face, parting her symmetrical lips and disclosing a row of +strong white teeth. + +"Galu?" she asked with rising inflection. + +And remembering that I read in Bowen's manuscript that Galu +seemed to indicate a higher type of man, I answered by pointing +to myself and repeating the word. Then she started off on a +regular catechism, if I could judge by her inflection, for I +certainly understood no word of what she said. All the time +the girl kept glancing toward the forest, and at last she +touched my arm and pointed in that direction. + +Turning, I saw a hairy figure of a manlike thing standing +watching us, and presently another and another emerged from the +jungle and joined the leader until there must have been at +least twenty of them. They were entirely naked. Their bodies +were covered with hair, and though they stood upon their feet +without touching their hands to the ground, they had a very +ape-like appearance, since they stooped forward and had very +long arms and quite apish features. They were not pretty to +look upon with their close-set eyes, flat noses, long upper +lips and protruding yellow fangs. + +"Alus!" said the girl. + +I had reread Bowen's adventures so often that I knew them +almost by heart, and so now I knew that I was looking upon the +last remnant of that ancient man-race--the Alus of a forgotten +period--the speechless man of antiquity. + +"Kazor!" cried the girl, and at the same moment the Alus +came jabbering toward us. They made strange growling, barking +noises, as with much baring of fangs they advanced upon us. +They were armed only with nature's weapons--powerful muscles +and giant fangs; yet I knew that these were quite sufficient to +overcome us had we nothing better to offer in defense, and so I +drew my pistol and fired at the leader. He dropped like a +stone, and the others turned and fled. Once again the girl +smiled her slow smile and stepping closer, caressed the barrel +of my automatic. As she did so, her fingers came in contact +with mine, and a sudden thrill ran through me, which I +attributed to the fact that it had been so long since I had +seen a woman of any sort or kind. + +She said something to me in her low, liquid tones; but I could +not understand her, and then she pointed toward the north and +started away. I followed her, for my way was north too; but +had it been south I still should have followed, so hungry was I +for human companionship in this world of beasts and reptiles +and half-men. + +We walked along, the girl talking a great deal and seeming +mystified that I could not understand her. Her silvery laugh +rang merrily when I in turn essayed to speak to her, as though +my language was the quaintest thing she ever had heard. +Often after fruitless attempts to make me understand she would +hold her palm toward me, saying, "Galu!" and then touch my +breast or arm and cry, "Alu, alu!" I knew what she meant, +for I had learned from Bowen's narrative the negative gesture +and the two words which she repeated. She meant that I was no +Galu, as I claimed, but an Alu, or speechless one. Yet every +time she said this she laughed again, and so infectious were +her tones that I could only join her. It was only natural, +too, that she should be mystified by my inability to comprehend +her or to make her comprehend me, for from the club-men, the +lowest human type in Caspak to have speech, to the golden race +of Galus, the tongues of the various tribes are identical--except +for amplifications in the rising scale of evolution. She, who +is a Galu, can understand one of the Bo-lu and make herself +understood to him, or to a hatchet-man, a spear-man or an archer. +The Ho-lus, or apes, the Alus and myself were the only creatures +of human semblance with which she could hold no converse; yet it +was evident that her intelligence told her that I was neither +Ho-lu nor Alu, neither anthropoid ape nor speechless man. + +Yet she did not despair, but set out to teach me her language; +and had it not been that I worried so greatly over the fate of +Bowen and my companions of the Toreador, I could have wished +the period of instruction prolonged. + +I never have been what one might call a ladies' man, though I +like their company immensely, and during my college days and +since have made various friends among the sex. I think that I +rather appeal to a certain type of girl for the reason that I +never make love to them; I leave that to the numerous others +who do it infinitely better than I could hope to, and take my +pleasure out of girls' society in what seem to be more rational +ways--dancing, golfing, boating, riding, tennis, and the like. +Yet in the company of this half-naked little savage I found a +new pleasure that was entirely distinct from any that I ever +had experienced. When she touched me, I thrilled as I had +never before thrilled in contact with another woman. I could +not quite understand it, for I am sufficiently sophisticated +to know that this is a symptom of love and I certainly did not +love this filthy little barbarian with her broken, unkempt +nails and her skin so besmeared with mud and the green of +crushed foliage that it was difficult to say what color it +originally had been. But if she was outwardly uncouth, her +clear eyes and strong white, even teeth, her silvery laugh and +her queenly carriage, bespoke an innate fineness which dirt +could not quite successfully conceal. + +The sun was low in the heavens when we came upon a little river +which emptied into a large bay at the foot of low cliffs. +Our journey so far had been beset with constant danger, as is +every journey in this frightful land. I have not bored you with +a recital of the wearying successions of attacks by the multitude +of creatures which were constantly crossing our path or +deliberately stalking us. We were always upon the alert; for +here, to paraphrase, eternal vigilance is indeed the price of life. + +I had managed to progress a little in the acquisition of a +knowledge of her tongue, so that I knew many of the animals and +reptiles by their Caspakian names, and trees and ferns and grasses. +I knew the words for sea and river and cliff, for sky +and sun and cloud. Yes, I was getting along finely, and then +it occurred to me that I didn't know my companion's name; so I +pointed to myself and said, "Tom," and to her and raised my +eyebrows in interrogation. The girl ran her fingers into that mass +of hair and looked puzzled. I repeated the action a dozen times. + +"Tom," she said finally in that clear, sweet, liquid voice. "Tom!" + +I had never thought much of my name before; but when she spoke +it, it sounded to me for the first time in my life like a +mighty nice name, and then she brightened suddenly and tapped +her own breast and said: "Ajor!" + +"Ajor!" I repeated, and she laughed and struck her palms together. + +Well, we knew each other's names now, and that was some satisfaction. +I rather liked hers--Ajor! And she seemed to like mine, for she +repeated it. + +We came to the cliffs beside the little river where it empties +into the bay with the great inland sea beyond. The cliffs were +weather-worn and rotted, and in one place a deep hollow ran +back beneath the overhanging stone for several feet, suggesting +shelter for the night. There were loose rocks strewn all about +with which I might build a barricade across the entrance to the +cave, and so I halted there and pointed out the place to Ajor, +trying to make her understand that we would spend the night there. + +As soon as she grasped my meaning, she assented with the +Caspakian equivalent of an affirmative nod, and then touching +my rifle, motioned me to follow her to the river. At the bank +she paused, removed her belt and dagger, dropping them to the +ground at her side; then unfastening the lower edge of her +garment from the metal leg-band to which it was attached, +slipped it off her left shoulder and let it drop to the ground +around her feet. It was done so naturally, so simply and so +quickly that it left me gasping like a fish out of water. +Turning, she flashed a smile at me and then dived into the +river, and there she bathed while I stood guard over her. +For five or ten minutes she splashed about, and when she +emerged her glistening skin was smooth and white and beautiful. +Without means of drying herself, she simply ignored what to me +would have seemed a necessity, and in a moment was arrayed in +her simple though effective costume. + +It was now within an hour of darkness, and as I was nearly +famished, I led the way back about a quarter of a mile to a +low meadow where we had seen antelope and small horses a short +time before. Here I brought down a young buck, the report of my +rifle sending the balance of the herd scampering for the woods, +where they were met by a chorus of hideous roars as the +carnivora took advantage of their panic and leaped among them. + +With my hunting-knife I removed a hind-quarter, and then we +returned to camp. Here I gathered a great quantity of wood +from fallen trees, Ajor helping me; but before I built a fire, +I also gathered sufficient loose rock to build my barricade +against the frightful terrors of the night to come. + +I shall never forget the expression upon Ajor's face as she saw +me strike a match and light the kindling beneath our camp-fire. +It was such an expression as might transform a mortal face with +awe as its owner beheld the mysterious workings of divinity. +It was evident that Ajor was quite unfamiliar with modern +methods of fire-making. She had thought my rifle and pistol +wonderful; but these tiny slivers of wood which from a magic +rub brought flame to the camp hearth were indeed miracles to her. + +As the meat roasted above the fire, Ajor and I tried once again +to talk; but though copiously filled with incentive, gestures +and sounds, the conversation did not flourish notably. And then +Ajor took up in earnest the task of teaching me her language. +She commenced, as I later learned, with the simplest form of +speech known to Caspak or for that matter to the world--that +employed by the Bo-lu. I found it far from difficult, and even +though it was a great handicap upon my instructor that she could +not speak my language, she did remarkably well and demonstrated +that she possessed ingenuity and intelligence of a high order. + +After we had eaten, I added to the pile of firewood so that I +could replenish the fire before the entrance to our barricade, +believing this as good a protection against the carnivora as we +could have; and then Ajor and I sat down before it, and the +lesson proceeded, while from all about us came the weird and +awesome noises of the Caspakian night--the moaning and the +coughing and roaring of the tigers, the panthers and the lions, +the barking and the dismal howling of a wolf, jackal and +hyaenadon, the shrill shrieks of stricken prey and the hissing +of the great reptiles; the voice of man alone was silent. + +But though the voice of this choir-terrible rose and fell from +far and near in all directions, reaching at time such a +tremendous volume of sound that the earth shook to it, yet so +engrossed was I in my lesson and in my teacher that often I was +deaf to what at another time would have filled me with awe. +The face and voice of the beautiful girl who leaned so eagerly +toward me as she tried to explain the meaning of some word or +correct my pronunciation of another quite entirely occupied my +every faculty of perception. The firelight shone upon her +animated features and sparkling eyes; it accentuated the +graceful motions of her gesturing arms and hands; it sparkled +from her white teeth and from her golden ornaments, and +glistened on the smooth firmness of her perfect skin. I am +afraid that often I was more occupied with admiration of this +beautiful animal than with a desire for knowledge; but be that +as it may, I nevertheless learned much that evening, though +part of what I learned had naught to do with any new language. + +Ajor seemed determined that I should speak Caspakian as quickly +as possible, and I thought I saw in her desire a little of that +all-feminine trait which has come down through all the ages +from the first lady of the world--curiosity. Ajor desired that +I should speak her tongue in order that she might satisfy a +curiosity concerning me that was filling her to a point where +she was in danger of bursting; of that I was positive. She was +a regular little animated question-mark. She bubbled over +with interrogations which were never to be satisfied unless +I learned to speak her tongue. Her eyes sparkled with +excitement; her hand flew in expressive gestures; her little +tongue raced with time; yet all to no avail. I could say man +and tree and cliff and lion and a number of +other words in perfect Caspakian; but such a vocabulary was +only tantalizing; it did not lend itself well to a very general +conversation, and the result was that Ajor would wax so wroth +that she would clench her little fists and beat me on the +breast as hard as ever she could, and then she would sink back +laughing as the humor of the situation captured her. + +She was trying to teach me some verbs by going through the +actions herself as she repeated the proper word. We were very +much engrossed--so much so that we were giving no heed to what +went on beyond our cave--when Ajor stopped very suddenly, +crying: "Kazor!" Now she had been trying to teach me that +ju meant stop; so when she cried kazor and at the same +time stopped, I thought for a moment that this was part of my +lesson--for the moment I forgot that kazor means beware. +I therefore repeated the word after her; but when I saw the +expression in her eyes as they were directed past me and saw +her point toward the entrance to the cave, I turned quickly-- +to see a hideous face at the small aperture leading out into +the night. It was the fierce and snarling countenance of a +gigantic bear. I have hunted silvertips in the White +Mountains of Arizona and thought them quite the largest and +most formidable of big game; but from the appearance of the +head of this awful creature I judged that the largest grizzly I +had ever seen would shrink by comparison to the dimensions of a +Newfoundland dog. + +Our fire was just within the cave, the smoke rising through the +apertures between the rocks that I had piled in such a way that +they arched inward toward the cliff at the top. The opening by +means of which we were to reach the outside was barricaded with +a few large fragments which did not by any means close it +entirely; but through the apertures thus left no large animal +could gain ingress. I had depended most, however, upon our +fire, feeling that none of the dangerous nocturnal beasts of +prey would venture close to the flames. In this, however, I +was quite evidently in error, for the great bear stood with his +nose not a foot from the blaze, which was now low, owing to the +fact that I had been so occupied with my lesson and my teacher +that I had neglected to replenish it. + +Ajor whipped out her futile little knife and pointed to my rifle. +At the same time she spoke in a quite level voice entirely devoid +of nervousness or any evidence of fear or panic. I knew she was +exhorting me to fire upon the beast; but this I did not wish to +do other than as a last resort, for I was quite sure that even +my heavy bullets would not more than further enrage him--in which +case he might easily force an entrance to our cave. + +Instead of firing, I piled some more wood upon the fire, and as +the smoke and blaze arose in the beast's face, it backed away, +growling most frightfully; but I still could see two ugly +points of light blazing in the outer darkness and hear its +growls rumbling terrifically without. For some time the +creature stood there watching the entrance to our frail +sanctuary while I racked my brains in futile endeavor to plan +some method of defense or escape. I knew full well that should +the bear make a determined effort to get at us, the rocks I had +piled as a barrier would come tumbling down about his giant +shoulders like a house of cards, and that he would walk +directly in upon us. + +Ajor, having less knowledge of the effectiveness of firearms +than I, and therefore greater confidence in them, entreated me +to shoot the beast; but I knew that the chance that I could +stop it with a single shot was most remote, while that I should +but infuriate it was real and present; and so I waited for what +seemed an eternity, watching those devilish points of fire +glaring balefully at us, and listening to the ever-increasing +volume of those seismic growls which seemed to rumble upward +from the bowels of the earth, shaking the very cliffs beneath +which we cowered, until at last I saw that the brute was again +approaching the aperture. It availed me nothing that I piled +the blaze high with firewood, until Ajor and I were near to +roasting; on came that mighty engine of destruction until once +again the hideous face yawned its fanged yawn directly within +the barrier's opening. It stood thus a moment, and then the +head was withdrawn. I breathed a sigh of relief, the thing had +altered its intention and was going on in search of other and +more easily procurable prey; the fire had been too much for it. + +But my joy was short-lived, and my heart sank once again as a +moment later I saw a mighty paw insinuated into the opening--a +paw as large around as a large dishpan. Very gently the paw +toyed with the great rock that partly closed the entrance, +pushed and pulled upon it and then very deliberately drew it +outward and to one side. Again came the head, and this time +much farther into the cavern; but still the great shoulders +would not pass through the opening. Ajor moved closer to me +until her shoulder touched my side, and I thought I felt a +slight tremor run through her body, but otherwise she gave no +indication of fear. Involuntarily I threw my left arm about +her and drew her to me for an instant. It was an act of +reassurance rather than a caress, though I must admit that +again and even in the face of death I thrilled at the contact +with her; and then I released her and threw my rifle to my +shoulder, for at last I had reached the conclusion that nothing +more could be gained by waiting. My only hope was to get as +many shots into the creature as I could before it was upon me. +Already it had torn away a second rock and was in the very act +of forcing its huge bulk through the opening it had now made. + +So now I took careful aim between its eyes; my right fingers +closed firmly and evenly upon the small of the stock, drawing +back my trigger-finger by the muscular action of the hand. +The bullet could not fail to hit its mark! I held my breath lest +I swerve the muzzle a hair by my breathing. I was as steady and +cool as I ever had been upon a target-range, and I had the full +consciousness of a perfect hit in anticipation; I knew that I +could not miss. And then, as the bear surged forward toward +me, the hammer fell--futilely, upon an imperfect cartridge. + +Almost simultaneously I heard from without a perfectly hellish +roar; the bear gave voice to a series of growls far +transcending in volume and ferocity anything that he had yet +essayed and at the same time backed quickly from the cave. +For an instant I couldn't understand what had happened to +cause this sudden retreat when his prey was practically within +his clutches. The idea that the harmless clicking of the +hammer had frightened him was too ridiculous to entertain. +However, we had not long to wait before we could at least guess +at the cause of the diversion, for from without came mingled +growls and roars and the sound of great bodies thrashing about +until the earth shook. The bear had been attacked in the rear +by some other mighty beast, and the two were now locked in a +titanic struggle for supremacy. With brief respites, during +which we could hear the labored breathing of the contestants, +the battle continued for the better part of an hour until the +sounds of combat grew gradually less and finally ceased entirely. + +At Ajor's suggestion, made by signs and a few of the words we +knew in common, I moved the fire directly to the entrance to +the cave so that a beast would have to pass directly through +the flames to reach us, and then we sat and waited for the +victor of the battle to come and claim his reward; but though +we sat for a long time with our eyes glued to the opening, we +saw no sign of any beast. + +At last I signed to Ajor to lie down, for I knew that she must +have sleep, and I sat on guard until nearly morning, when the +girl awoke and insisted that I take some rest; nor would she be +denied, but dragged me down as she laughingly menaced me with +her knife. + + + +Chapter 3 + +When I awoke, it was daylight, and I found Ajor squatting +before a fine bed of coals roasting a large piece of +antelope-meat. Believe me, the sight of the new day and the +delicious odor of the cooking meat filled me with renewed +happiness and hope that had been all but expunged by the +experience of the previous night; and perhaps the slender +figure of the bright-faced girl proved also a potent restorative. +She looked up and smiled at me, showing those perfect teeth, +and dimpling with evident happiness--the most adorable picture +that I had ever seen. I recall that it was then I first +regretted that she was only a little untutored savage and +so far beneath me in the scale of evolution. + +Her first act was to beckon me to follow her outside, and there +she pointed to the explanation of our rescue from the bear--a +huge saber-tooth tiger, its fine coat and its flesh torn to +ribbons, lying dead a few paces from our cave, and beside it, +equally mangled, and disemboweled, was the carcass of a huge +cave-bear. To have had one's life saved by a saber-tooth +tiger, and in the twentieth century into the bargain, was an +experience that was to say the least unique; but it had +happened--I had the proof of it before my eyes. + +So enormous are the great carnivora of Caspak that they must +feed perpetually to support their giant thews, and the result +is that they will eat the meat of any other creature and will +attack anything that comes within their ken, no matter how +formidable the quarry. From later observation--I mention this +as worthy the attention of paleontologists and naturalists--I +came to the conclusion that such creatures as the cave-bear, +the cave-lion and the saber-tooth tiger, as well as the larger +carnivorous reptiles make, ordinarily, two kills a day--one in +the morning and one after night. They immediately devour the +entire carcass, after which they lie up and sleep for a few hours. +Fortunately their numbers are comparatively few; otherwise there +would be no other life within Caspak. It is their very voracity +that keeps their numbers down to a point which permits other +forms of life to persist, for even in the season of love the +great males often turn upon their own mates and devour them, +while both males and females occasionally devour their young. +How the human and semihuman races have managed to survive +during all the countless ages that these conditions must have +existed here is quite beyond me. + +After breakfast Ajor and I set out once more upon our +northward journey. We had gone but a little distance when we +were attacked by a number of apelike creatures armed with clubs. +They seemed a little higher in the scale than the Alus. Ajor told +me they were Bo-lu, or clubmen. A revolver-shot killed one and +scattered the others; but several times later during the day we +were menaced by them, until we had left their country and +entered that of the Sto-lu, or hatchet-men. These people were +less hairy and more man-like; nor did they appear so anxious to +destroy us. Rather they were curious, and followed us for some +distance examining us most closely. They called out to us, +and Ajor answered them; but her replies did not seem to +satisfy them, for they gradually became threatening, and I +think they were preparing to attack us when a small deer that +had been hiding in some low brush suddenly broke cover and +dashed across our front. We needed meat, for it was near +one o'clock and I was getting hungry; so I drew my pistol +and with a single shot dropped the creature in its tracks. +The effect upon the Bo-lu was electrical. Immediately they +abandoned all thoughts of war, and turning, scampered for the +forest which fringed our path. + +That night we spent beside a little stream in the Sto-lu country. +We found a tiny cave in the rock bank, so hidden away that +only chance could direct a beast of prey to it, and after +we had eaten of the deer-meat and some fruit which Ajor +gathered, we crawled into the little hole, and with sticks and +stones which I had gathered for the purpose I erected a strong +barricade inside the entrance. Nothing could reach us without +swimming and wading through the stream, and I felt quite secure +from attack. Our quarters were rather cramped. The ceiling +was so low that we could not stand up, and the floor so narrow +that it was with difficulty that we both wedged into it +together; but we were very tired, and so we made the most of +it; and so great was the feeling of security that I am sure I +fell asleep as soon as I had stretched myself beside Ajor. + +During the three days which followed, our progress was +exasperatingly slow. I doubt if we made ten miles in the +entire three days. The country was hideously savage, so that +we were forced to spend hours at a time in hiding from one or +another of the great beasts which menaced us continually. +There were fewer reptiles; but the quantity of carnivora seemed +to have increased, and the reptiles that we did see were +perfectly gigantic. I shall never forget one enormous specimen +which we came upon browsing upon water-reeds at the edge of the +great sea. It stood well over twelve feet high at the rump, +its highest point, and with its enormously long tail and neck it +was somewhere between seventy-five and a hundred feet in length. +Its head was ridiculously small; its body was unarmored, but its +great bulk gave it a most formidable appearance. My experience +of Caspakian life led me to believe that the gigantic creature +would but have to see us to attack us, and so I raised my rifle +and at the same time drew away toward some brush which offered +concealment; but Ajor only laughed, and picking up a stick, ran +toward the great thing, shouting. The little head was raised +high upon the long neck as the animal stupidly looked here and +there in search of the author of the disturbance. At last its +eyes discovered tiny little Ajor, and then she hurled the stick +at the diminutive head. With a cry that sounded not unlike the +bleat of a sheep, the colossal creature shuffled into the water +and was soon submerged. + +As I slowly recalled my collegiate studies and paleontological +readings in Bowen's textbooks, I realized that I had looked +upon nothing less than a diplodocus of the Upper Jurassic; but +how infinitely different was the true, live thing from the +crude restorations of Hatcher and Holland! I had had the idea +that the diplodocus was a land-animal, but evidently it is +partially amphibious. I have seen several since my first +encounter, and in each case the creature took to the sea for +concealment as soon as it was disturbed. With the exception of +its gigantic tail, it has no weapon of defense; but with this +appendage it can lash so terrific a blow as to lay low even a +giant cave-bear, stunned and broken. It is a stupid, simple, +gentle beast--one of the few within Caspak which such a +description might even remotely fit. + +For three nights we slept in trees, finding no caves or other +places of concealment. Here we were free from the attacks of +the large land carnivora; but the smaller flying reptiles, the +snakes, leopards, and panthers were a constant menace, though +by no means as much to be feared as the huge beasts that roamed +the surface of the earth. + +At the close of the third day Ajor and I were able to converse +with considerable fluency, and it was a great relief to both of +us, especially to Ajor. She now did nothing but ask questions +whenever I would let her, which could not be all the time, as +our preservation depended largely upon the rapidity with which +I could gain knowledge of the geography and customs of Caspak, +and accordingly I had to ask numerous questions myself. + +I enjoyed immensely hearing and answering her, so naive were +many of her queries and so filled with wonder was she at the +things I told her of the world beyond the lofty barriers of +Caspak; not once did she seem to doubt me, however marvelous my +statements must have seemed; and doubtless they were the cause +of marvel to Ajor, who before had never dreamed that any life +existed beyond Caspak and the life she knew. + +Artless though many of her questions were, they evidenced a +keen intellect and a shrewdness which seemed far beyond her +years of her experience. Altogether I was finding my little +savage a mighty interesting and companionable person, and I +often thanked the kind fate that directed the crossing of +our paths. From her I learned much of Caspak, but there still +remained the mystery that had proved so baffling to Bowen +Tyler--the total absence of young among the ape, the semihuman +and the human races with which both he and I had come in +contact upon opposite shores of the inland sea. Ajor tried to +explain the matter to me, though it was apparent that she could +not conceive how so natural a condition should demand explanation. +She told me that among the Galus there were a few babies, that +she had once been a baby but that most of her people "came up," +as he put it, "cor sva jo," or literally, "from the beginning"; +and as they all did when they used that phrase, she would wave +a broad gesture toward the south. + +"For long," she explained, leaning very close to me and +whispering the words into my ear while she cast apprehensive +glances about and mostly skyward, "for long my mother kept me +hidden lest the Wieroo, passing through the air by night, +should come and take me away to Oo-oh." And the child shuddered +as she voiced the word. I tried to get her to tell me more; +but her terror was so real when she spoke of the Wieroo and the +land of Oo-oh where they dwell that I at last desisted, though +I did learn that the Wieroo carried off only female babes and +occasionally women of the Galus who had "come up from the +beginning." It was all very mysterious and unfathomable, but I +got the idea that the Wieroo were creatures of imagination--the +demons or gods of her race, omniscient and omnipresent. This led +me to assume that the Galus had a religious sense, and further +questioning brought out the fact that such was the case. +Ajor spoke in tones of reverence of Luata, the god of heat +and life. The word is derived from two others: Lua, +meaning sun, and ata, meaning variously eggs, life, +young, and reproduction. She told me that they +worshiped Luata in several forms, as fire, the sun, eggs and +other material objects which suggested heat and reproduction. + +I had noticed that whenever I built a fire, Ajor outlined in +the air before her with a forefinger an isosceles triangle, +and that she did the same in the morning when she first viewed +the sun. At first I had not connected her act with anything in +particular, but after we learned to converse and she had +explained a little of her religious superstitions, I realized +that she was making the sign of the triangle as a Roman Catholic +makes the sign of the cross. Always the short side of the triangle +was uppermost. As she explained all this to me, she pointed to +the decorations on her golden armlets, upon the knob of her +dagger-hilt and upon the band which encircled her right leg +above the knee--always was the design partly made up of isosceles +triangles, and when she explained the significance of this +particular geometric figure, I at once grasped its appropriateness. + +We were now in the country of the Band-lu, the spearmen of Caspak. +Bowen had remarked in his narrative that these people were +analogous to the so-called Cro-Magnon race of the Upper +Paleolithic, and I was therefore very anxious to see them. +Nor was I to be disappointed; I saw them, all right! We had left +the Sto-lu country and literally fought our way through cordons +of wild beasts for two days when we decided to make camp a +little earlier than usual, owing to the fact that we had +reached a line of cliffs running east and west in which were +numerous likely cave-lodgings. We were both very tired, and +the sight of these caverns, several of which could be easily +barricaded, decided us to halt until the following morning. +It took but a few minutes' exploration to discover one particular +cavern high up the face of the cliff which seemed ideal for +our purpose. It opened upon a narrow ledge where we could build +our cook-fire; the opening was so small that we had to lie flat +and wriggle through it to gain ingress, while the interior was +high-ceiled and spacious. I lighted a faggot and looked about; +but as far as I could see, the chamber ran back into the cliff. + +Laying aside my rifle, pistol and heavy ammunition-belt, I +left Ajor in the cave while I went down to gather firewood. +We already had meat and fruits which we had gathered just +before reaching the cliffs, and my canteen was filled with +fresh water. Therefore, all we required was fuel, and as I always +saved Ajor's strength when I could, I would not permit her to +accompany me. The poor girl was very tired; but she would have +gone with me until she dropped, I know, so loyal was she. She was +the best comrade in the world, and sometimes I regretted and +sometimes I was glad that she was not of my own caste, for had +she been, I should unquestionably have fallen in love with her. +As it was, we traveled together like two boys, with huge respect +for each other but no softer sentiment. + +There was little timber close to the base of the cliffs, and so +I was forced to enter the wood some two hundred yards distant. +I realize now how foolhardy was my act in such a land as +Caspak, teeming with danger and with death; but there is a +certain amount of fool in every man; and whatever proportion of +it I own must have been in the ascendant that day, for the +truth of the matter is that I went down into those woods +absolutely defenseless; and I paid the price, as people usually +do for their indiscretions. As I searched around in the brush +for likely pieces of firewood, my head bowed and my eyes upon +the ground, I suddenly felt a great weight hurl itself upon me. +I struggled to my knees and seized my assailant, a huge, naked +man--naked except for a breechcloth of snakeskin, the head +hanging down to the knees. The fellow was armed with a +stone-shod spear, a stone knife and a hatchet. In his black +hair were several gay-colored feathers. As we struggled to and +fro, I was slowly gaining advantage of him, when a score of his +fellows came running up and overpowered me. + +They bound my hands behind me with long rawhide thongs and then +surveyed me critically. I found them fine-looking specimens of +manhood, for the most part. There were some among them who bore +a resemblance to the Sto-lu and were hairy; but the majority had +massive heads and not unlovely features. There was little about +them to suggest the ape, as in the Sto-lu, Bo-lu and Alus. +I expected them to kill me at once, but they did not. Instead they +questioned me; but it was evident that they did not believe my +story, for they scoffed and laughed. + +"The Galus have turned you out," they cried. "If you go back +to them, you will die. If you remain here, you will die. +We shall kill you; but first we shall have a dance and you +shall dance with us--the dance of death." + +It sounded quite reassuring! But I knew that I was not to be +killed immediately, and so I took heart. They led me toward +the cliffs, and as we approached them, I glanced up and was +sure that I saw Ajor's bright eyes peering down upon us from +our lofty cave; but she gave no sign if she saw me; and we +passed on, rounded the end of the cliffs and proceeded along +the opposite face of them until we came to a section literally +honeycombed with caves. All about, upon the ground and +swarming the ledges before the entrances, were hundreds of +members of the tribe. There were many women but no babes or +children, though I noticed that the females had better +developed breasts than any that I had seen among the +hatchet-men, the club-men, the Alus or the apes. In fact, +among the lower orders of Caspakian man the female breast is +but a rudimentary organ, barely suggested in the apes and Alus, +and only a little more defined in the Bo-lu and Sto-lu, though +always increasingly so until it is found about half developed +in the females of the spear-men; yet never was there an +indication that the females had suckled young; nor were there any +young among them. Some of the Band-lu women were quite comely. +The figures of all, both men and women, were symmetrical though +heavy, and though there were some who verged strongly upon the +Sto-lu type, there were others who were positively handsome and +whose bodies were quite hairless. The Alus are all bearded, +but among the Bo-lu the beard disappears in the women. The Sto-lu +men show a sparse beard, the Band-lu none; and there is little +hair upon the bodies of their women. + +The members of the tribe showed great interest in me, +especially in my clothing, the like of which, of course, they +never had seen. They pulled and hauled upon me, and some of +them struck me; but for the most part they were not inclined +to brutality. It was only the hairier ones, who most closely +resembled the Sto-lu, who maltreated me. At last my captors led +me into a great cave in the mouth of which a fire was burning. +The floor was littered with filth, including the bones of many +animals, and the atmosphere reeked with the stench of human +bodies and putrefying flesh. Here they fed me, releasing my +arms, and I ate of half-cooked aurochs steak and a stew which +may have been made of snakes, for many of the long, round +pieces of meat suggested them most nauseatingly. + +The meal completed, they led me well within the cavern, which +they lighted with torches stuck in various crevices in the +light of which I saw, to my astonishment, that the walls were +covered with paintings and etchings. There were aurochs, red +deer, saber-tooth tiger, cave-bear, hyaenadon and many other +examples of the fauna of Caspak done in colors, usually of four +shades of brown, or scratched upon the surface of the rock. +Often they were super-imposed upon each other until it required +careful examination to trace out the various outlines. But they +all showed a rather remarkable aptitude for delineation which +further fortified Bowen's comparisons between these people and +the extinct Cro-Magnons whose ancient art is still preserved +in the caverns of Niaux and Le Portel. The Band-lu, however, +did not have the bow and arrow, and in this respect they differ +from their extinct progenitors, or descendants, of Western Europe. + +Should any of my friends chance to read the story of my +adventures upon Caprona, I hope they will not be bored by these +diversions, and if they are, I can only say that I am writing +my memoirs for my own edification and therefore setting down +those things which interested me particularly at the time. +I have no desire that the general public should ever have access +to these pages; but it is possible that my friends may, and +also certain savants who are interested; and to them, while I +do not apologize for my philosophizing, I humbly explain that +they are witnessing the groupings of a finite mind after the +infinite, the search for explanations of the inexplicable. + +In a far recess of the cavern my captors bade me halt. Again my +hands were secured, and this time my feet as well. During the +operation they questioned me, and I was mighty glad that the +marked similarity between the various tribal tongues of Caspak +enabled us to understand each other perfectly, even though they +were unable to believe or even to comprehend the truth of my +origin and the circumstances of my advent in Caspak; and finally +they left me saying that they would come for me before the dance +of death upon the morrow. Before they departed with their +torches, I saw that I had not been conducted to the farthest +extremity of the cavern, for a dark and gloomy corridor led +beyond my prison room into the heart of the cliff. + +I could not but marvel at the immensity of this great +underground grotto. Already I had traversed several hundred +yards of it, from many points of which other corridors diverged. +The whole cliff must be honeycombed with apartments and passages +of which this community occupied but a comparatively small part, +so that the possibility of the more remote passages being the +lair of savage beasts that have other means of ingress and egress +than that used by the Band-lu filled me with dire forebodings. + +I believe that I am not ordinarily hysterically apprehensive; +yet I must confess that under the conditions with which I was +confronted, I felt my nerves to be somewhat shaken. On the +morrow I was to die some sort of nameless death for the +diversion of a savage horde, but the morrow held fewer terrors +for me than the present, and I submit to any fair-minded man if +it is not a terrifying thing to lie bound hand and foot in the +Stygian blackness of an immense cave peopled by unknown dangers +in a land overrun by hideous beasts and reptiles of the +greatest ferocity. At any moment, perhaps at this very moment, +some silent-footed beast of prey might catch my scent where it +laired in some contiguous passage, and might creep stealthily +upon me. I craned my neck about, and stared through the inky +darkness for the twin spots of blazing hate which I knew would +herald the coming of my executioner. So real were the +imaginings of my overwrought brain that I broke into a cold +sweat in absolute conviction that some beast was close before +me; yet the hours dragged, and no sound broke the grave-like +stillness of the cavern. + +During that period of eternity many events of my life passed +before my mental vision, a vast parade of friends and +occurrences which would be blotted out forever on the morrow. +I cursed myself for the foolish act which had taken me from the +search-party that so depended upon me, and I wondered what +progress, if any, they had made. Were they still beyond the +barrier cliffs, awaiting my return? Or had they found a way +into Caspak? I felt that the latter would be the truth, for +the party was not made up of men easily turned from a purpose. +Quite probable it was that they were already searching for me; +but that they would ever find a trace of me I doubted. Long since, +had I come to the conclusion that it was beyond human prowess +to circle the shores of the inland sea of Caspak in the face +of the myriad menaces which lurked in every shadow by day and +by night. Long since, had I given up any hope of reaching +the point where I had made my entry into the country, and so I +was now equally convinced that our entire expedition had been +worse than futile before ever it was conceived, since Bowen J. +Tyler and his wife could not by any possibility have survived +during all these long months; no more could Bradley and his +party of seamen be yet in existence. If the superior force and +equipment of my party enabled them to circle the north end of +the sea, they might some day come upon the broken wreck of my +plane hanging in the great tree to the south; but long before +that, my bones would be added to the litter upon the floor of +this mighty cavern. + +And through all my thoughts, real and fanciful, moved the image +of a perfect girl, clear-eyed and strong and straight and +beautiful, with the carriage of a queen and the supple, +undulating grace of a leopard. Though I loved my friends, +their fate seemed of less importance to me than the fate of +this little barbarian stranger for whom, I had convinced +myself many a time, I felt no greater sentiment than passing +friendship for a fellow-wayfarer in this land of horrors. Yet I +so worried and fretted about her and her future that at last +I quite forgot my own predicament, though I still struggled +intermittently with bonds in vain endeavor to free myself; as +much, however, that I might hasten to her protection as that I +might escape the fate which had been planned for me. And while +I was thus engaged and had for the moment forgotten my +apprehensions concerning prowling beasts, I was startled into +tense silence by a distinct and unmistakable sound coming from +the dark corridor farther toward the heart of the cliff--the +sound of padded feet moving stealthily in my direction. + +I believe that never before in all my life, even amidst the +terrors of childhood nights, have I suffered such a sensation +of extreme horror as I did that moment in which I realized that +I must lie bound and helpless while some horrid beast of prey +crept upon me to devour me in that utter darkness of the Bandlu +pits of Caspak. I reeked with cold sweat, and my flesh +crawled--I could feel it crawl. If ever I came nearer to +abject cowardice, I do not recall the instance; and yet it was +not that I was afraid to die, for I had long since given myself +up as lost--a few days of Caspak must impress anyone with the +utter nothingness of life. The waters, the land, the air +teem with it, and always it is being devoured by some other +form of life. Life is the cheapest thing in Caspak, as it +is the cheapest thing on earth and, doubtless, the cheapest +cosmic production. No, I was not afraid to die; in fact, I +prayed for death, that I might be relieved of the frightfulness +of the interval of life which remained to me--the waiting, the +awful waiting, for that fearsome beast to reach me and to strike. + +Presently it was so close that I could hear its breathing, and +then it touched me and leaped quickly back as though it had +come upon me unexpectedly. For long moments no sound broke the +sepulchral silence of the cave. Then I heard a movement on the +part of the creature near me, and again it touched me, and I +felt something like a hairless hand pass over my face and down +until it touched the collar of my flannel shirt. And then, +subdued, but filled with pent emotion, a voice cried: "Tom!" + +I think I nearly fainted, so great was the reaction. "Ajor!" +I managed to say. "Ajor, my girl, can it be you?" + +"Oh, Tom!" she cried again in a trembly little voice and flung +herself upon me, sobbing softly. I had not known that Ajor +could cry. + +As she cut away my bonds, she told me that from the entrance to +our cave she had seen the Band-lu coming out of the forest with +me, and she had followed until they took me into the cave, +which she had seen was upon the opposite side of the cliff in +which ours was located; and then, knowing that she could do +nothing for me until after the Band-lu slept, she had hastened +to return to our cave. With difficulty she had reached it, +after having been stalked by a cave-lion and almost seized. +I trembled at the risk she had run. + +It had been her intention to wait until after midnight, when +most of the carnivora would have made their kills, and then +attempt to reach the cave in which I was imprisoned and rescue me. +She explained that with my rifle and pistol--both of which +she assured me she could use, having watched me so many +times--she planned upon frightening the Band-lu and forcing +them to give me up. Brave little girl! She would have risked +her life willingly to save me. But some time after she reached +our cave she heard voices from the far recesses within, and +immediately concluded that we had but found another entrance +to the caves which the Band-lu occupied upon the other face of +the cliff. Then she had set out through those winding passages +and in total darkness had groped her way, guided solely by a +marvelous sense of direction, to where I lay. She had had to +proceed with utmost caution lest she fall into some abyss in +the darkness and in truth she had thrice come upon sheer drops +and had been forced to take the most frightful risks to pass them. +I shudder even now as I contemplate what this girl passed through +for my sake and how she enhanced her peril in loading herself +down with the weight of my arms and ammunition and the +awkwardness of the long rifle which she was unaccustomed to bearing. + +I could have knelt and kissed her hand in reverence and +gratitude; nor am I ashamed to say that that is precisely what +I did after I had been freed from my bonds and heard the story +of her trials. Brave little Ajor! Wonder-girl out of the dim, +unthinkable past! Never before had she been kissed; but she +seemed to sense something of the meaning of the new caress, +for she leaned forward in the dark and pressed her own lips +to my forehead. A sudden urge surged through me to seize her +and strain her to my bosom and cover her hot young lips with +the kisses of a real love, but I did not do so, for I knew that +I did not love her; and to have kissed her thus, with passion, +would have been to inflict a great wrong upon her who had +offered her life for mine. + +No, Ajor should be as safe with me as with her own mother, if +she had one, which I was inclined to doubt, even though she +told me that she had once been a babe and hidden by her mother. +I had come to doubt if there was such a thing as a mother in +Caspak, a mother such as we know. From the Bo-lu to the Kro-lu +there is no word which corresponds with our word mother. +They speak of ata and cor sva jo, meaning reproduction +and from the beginning, and point toward the south; but no +one has a mother. + +After considerable difficulty we gained what we thought was our +cave, only to find that it was not, and then we realized that +we were lost in the labyrinthine mazes of the great cavern. +We retraced our steps and sought the point from which we had +started, but only succeeded in losing ourselves the more. +Ajor was aghast--not so much from fear of our predicament; but +that she should have failed in the functioning of that wonderful +sense she possessed in common with most other creatures +Caspakian, which makes it possible for them to move unerringly +from place to place without compass or guide. + +Hand in hand we crept along, searching for an opening into +the outer world, yet realizing that at each step we might be +burrowing more deeply into the heart of the great cliff, or +circling futilely in the vague wandering that could end only +in death. And the darkness! It was almost palpable, and +utterly depressing. I had matches, and in some of the more +difficult places I struck one; but we couldn't afford to waste +them, and so we groped our way slowly along, doing the best we +could to keep to one general direction in the hope that it would +eventually lead us to an opening into the outer world. When I +struck matches, I noticed that the walls bore no paintings; nor +was there other sign that man had penetrated this far within +the cliff, nor any spoor of animals of other kinds. + +It would be difficult to guess at the time we spent wandering +through those black corridors, climbing steep ascents, feeling +our way along the edges of bottomless pits, never knowing at what +moment we might be plunged into some abyss and always haunted +by the ever-present terror of death by starvation and thirst. +As difficult as it was, I still realized that it might have +been infinitely worse had I had another companion than +Ajor--courageous, uncomplaining, loyal little Ajor! She was +tired and hungry and thirsty, and she must have been +discouraged; but she never faltered in her cheerfulness. +I asked her if she was afraid, and she replied that here the +Wieroo could not get her, and that if she died of hunger, she +would at least die with me and she was quite content that such +should be her end. At the time I attributed her attitude to +something akin to a doglike devotion to a new master who had +been kind to her. I can take oath to the fact that I did not +think it was anything more. + +Whether we had been imprisoned in the cliff for a day or a week +I could not say; nor even now do I know. We became very tired +and hungry; the hours dragged; we slept at least twice, and then +we rose and stumbled on, always weaker and weaker. There were +ages during which the trend of the corridors was always upward. +It was heartbreaking work for people in the state of exhaustion +in which we then were, but we clung tenaciously to it. We stumbled +and fell; we sank through pure physical inability to retain our +feet; but always we managed to rise at last and go on. At first, +wherever it had been possible, we had walked hand in hand lest +we become separated, and later, when I saw that Ajor was +weakening rapidly, we went side by side, I supporting her with +an arm about her waist. I still retained the heavy burden of +my armament; but with the rifle slung to my back, my hands +were free. When I too showed indisputable evidences of +exhaustion, Ajor suggested that I lay aside my arms and +ammunition; but I told her that as it would mean certain death +for me to traverse Caspak without them, I might as well take +the chance of dying here in the cave with them, for there was +the other chance that we might find our wayto liberty. + +There came a time when Ajor could no longer walk, and then +it was that I picked her up in my arms and carried her. +She begged me to leave her, saying that after I found an exit, +I could come back and get her; but she knew, and she knew that I +knew, that if ever I did leave her, I could never find her again. +Yet she insisted. Barely had I sufficient strength to take a +score of steps at a time; then I would have to sink down and +rest for five to ten minutes. I don't know what force +urged me on and kept me going in the face of an absolute +conviction that my efforts were utterly futile. I counted us +already as good as dead; but still I dragged myself along until +the time came that I could no longer rise, but could only crawl +along a few inches at a time, dragging Ajor beside me. Her sweet +voice, now almost inaudible from weakness, implored me to +abandon her and save myself--she seemed to think only of me. +Of course I couldn't have left her there alone, no matter how +much I might have desired to do so; but the fact of the matter +was that I didn't desire to leave her. What I said to her then +came very simply and naturally to my lips. It couldn't very +well have been otherwise, I imagine, for with death so close, I +doubt if people are much inclined to heroics. "I would rather +not get out at all, Ajor," I said to her, "than to get out +without you." We were resting against a rocky wall, and Ajor +was leaning against me, her head on my breast. I could feel +her press closer to me, and one hand stroked my arm in a weak +caress; but she didn't say anything, nor were words necessary. + +After a few minutes' more rest, we started on again upon our +utterly hopeless way; but I soon realized that I was weakening +rapidly, and presently I was forced to admit that I was through. +"It's no use, Ajor," I said, "I've come as far as I can. It may +be that if I sleep, I can go on again after," but I knew that +that was not true, and that the end was near. "Yes, sleep," +said Ajor. "We will sleep together--forever." + +She crept close to me as I lay on the hard floor and pillowed +her head upon my arm. With the little strength which remained +to me, I drew her up until our lips touched, and, then I +whispered: "Good-bye!" I must have lost consciousness almost +immediately, for I recall nothing more until I suddenly awoke +out of a troubled sleep, during which I dreamed that I was +drowning, to find the cave lighted by what appeared to be +diffused daylight, and a tiny trickle of water running down the +corridor and forming a puddle in the little depression in which +it chanced that Ajor and I lay. I turned my eyes quickly upon +Ajor, fearful for what the light might disclose; but she still +breathed, though very faintly. Then I searched about for an +explanation of the light, and soon discovered that it came from +about a bend in the corridor just ahead of us and at the top of +a steep incline; and instantly I realized that Ajor and I had +stumbled by night almost to the portal of salvation. Had chance +taken us a few yards further, up either of the corridors which +diverged from ours just ahead of us, we might have been +irrevocably lost; we might still be lost; but at least we could +die in the light of day, out of the horrid blackness of this +terrible cave. + +I tried to rise, and found that sleep had given me back a +portion of my strength; and then I tasted the water and was +further refreshed. I shook Ajor gently by the shoulder; but +she did not open her eyes, and then I gathered a few drops of +water in my cupped palm and let them trickle between her lips. +This revived her so that she raised her lids, and when she saw +me, she smiled. + +"What happened?" she asked. "Where are we?" + +"We are at the end of the corridor," I replied, and daylight is +coming in from the outside world just ahead. We are saved, Ajor!" + +She sat up then and looked about, and then, quite womanlike, +she burst into tears. It was the reaction, of course; and then +too, she was very weak. I took her in my arms and quieted her +as best I could, and finally, with my help, she got to her +feet; for she, as well as I, had found some slight recuperation +in sleep. Together we staggered upward toward the light, and +at the first turn we saw an opening a few yards ahead of us and +a leaden sky beyond--a leaden sky from which was falling a +drizzling rain, the author of our little, trickling stream +which had given us drink when we were most in need of it. + +The cave had been damp and cold; but as we crawled through the +aperture, the muggy warmth of the Caspakian air caressed and +confronted us; even the rain was warmer than the atmosphere of +those dark corridors. We had water now, and warmth, and I was +sure that Caspak would soon offer us meat or fruit; but as we +came to where we could look about, we saw that we were upon the +summit of the cliffs, where there seemed little reason to +expect game. However, there were trees, and among them we soon +descried edible fruits with which we broke our long fast. + + + +Chapter 4 + +We spent two days upon the cliff-top, resting and recuperating. +There was some small game which gave us meat, and the little +pools of rainwater were sufficient to quench our thirst. +The sun came out a few hours after we emerged from the cave, +and in its warmth we soon cast off the gloom which our recent +experiences had saddled upon us. + +Upon the morning of the third day we set out to search for a +path down to the valley. Below us, to the north, we saw a +large pool lying at the foot of the cliffs, and in it we could +discern the women of the Band-lu lying in the shallow waters, +while beyond and close to the base of the mighty barrier-cliffs +there was a large party of Band-lu warriors going north to hunt. +We had a splendid view from our lofty cliff-top. Dimly, to the +west, we could see the farther shore of the inland sea, and +southwest the large southern island loomed distinctly before us. +A little east of north was the northern island, which Ajor, +shuddering, whispered was the home of the Wieroo--the land +of Oo-oh. It lay at the far end of the lake and was barely +visible to us, being fully sixty miles away. + +From our elevation, and in a clearer atmosphere, it would have +stood out distinctly; but the air of Caspak is heavy with +moisture, with the result that distant objects are blurred +and indistinct. Ajor also told me that the mainland east of Oo-oh +was her land--the land of the Galu. She pointed out the cliffs +at its southern boundary, which mark the frontier, south of +which lies the country of Kro-lu--the archers. We now had but +to pass through the balance of the Band-lu territory and that +of the Kro-lu to be within the confines of her own land; but +that meant traversing thirty-five miles of hostile country +filled with every imaginable terror, and possibly many beyond +the powers of imagination. I would certainly have given a lot +for my plane at that moment, for with it, twenty minutes would +have landed us within the confines of Ajor's country. + +We finally found a place where we could slip over the edge of +the cliff onto a narrow ledge which seemed to give evidence of +being something of a game-path to the valley, though it +apparently had not been used for some time. I lowered Ajor at +the end of my rifle and then slid over myself, and I am free to +admit that my hair stood on end during the process, for the +drop was considerable and the ledge appallingly narrow, with a +frightful drop sheer below down to the rocks at the base of the +cliff; but with Ajor there to catch and steady me, I made it +all right, and then we set off down the trail toward the valley. +There were two or three more bad places, but for the most part +it was an easy descent, and we came to the highest of the +Band-lu caves without further trouble. Here we went more +slowly, lest we should be set upon by some member of the tribe. + +We must have passed about half the Band-lu cave-levels before +we were accosted, and then a huge fellow stepped out in front +of me, barring our further progress. + +"Who are you?" he asked; and he recognized me and I him, for he +had been one of those who had led me back into the cave and +bound me the night that I had been captured. From me his gaze +went to Ajor. He was a fine-looking man with clear, intelligent +eyes, a good forehead and superb physique--by far the highest +type of Caspakian I had yet seen, barring Ajor, of course. + +"You are a true Galu," he said to Ajor, "but this man is of a +different mold. He has the face of a Galu, but his weapons and +the strange skins he wears upon his body are not of the Galus +nor of Caspak. Who is he?" + +"He is Tom," replied Ajor succinctly. + +"There is no such people," asserted the Band-lu quite +truthfully, toying with his spear in a most suggestive manner. + +"My name is Tom," I explained, "and I am from a country +beyond Caspak." I thought it best to propitiate him if possible, +because of the necessity of conserving ammunition as well as to +avoid the loud alarm of a shot which might bring other Band-lu +warriors upon us. "I am from America, a land of which you +never heard, and I am seeking others of my countrymen who are +in Caspak and from whom I am lost. I have no quarrel with you +or your people. Let us go our way in peace." + +"You are going there?" he asked, and pointed toward the north. + +"I am," I replied. + +He was silent for several minutes, apparently weighing some +thought in his mind. At last he spoke. "What is that?" +he asked. "And what is that?" He pointed first at my rifle +and then to my pistol. + +"They are weapons," I replied, "weapons which kill at a +great distance." I pointed to the women in the pool beneath us. +"With this," I said, tapping my pistol, "I could kill as many +of those women as I cared to, without moving a step from where +we now stand." + +He looked his incredulity, but I went on. "And with this"--I +weighed my rifle at the balance in the palm of my right +hand--"I could slay one of those distant warriors." And I waved +my left hand toward the tiny figures of the hunters far to the north. + +The fellow laughed. "Do it," he cried derisively, "and then it +may be that I shall believe the balance of your strange story." + +"But I do not wish to kill any of them," I replied. "Why should I?" + +"Why not?" he insisted. "They would have killed you when they +had you prisoner. They would kill you now if they could get +their hands on you, and they would eat you into the bargain. +But I know why you do not try it--it is because you have spoken +lies; your weapon will not kill at a great distance. It is +only a queerly wrought club. For all I know, you are nothing +more than a lowly Bo-lu." + +"Why should you wish me to kill your own people?" I asked. + +"They are no longer my people," he replied proudly. "Last night, +in the very middle of the night, the call came to me. Like that +it came into my head"--and he struck his hands together smartly +once--"that I had risen. I have been waiting for it and +expecting it for a long time; today I am a Krolu. Today I go +into the coslupak" (unpeopled country, or literally, no man's +land) "between the Band-lu and the Kro-lu, and there I fashion +my bow and my arrows and my shield; there I hunt the red deer +for the leathern jerkin which is the badge of my new estate. +When these things are done, I can go to the chief of the Kro-lu, +and he dare not refuse me. That is why you may kill those low +Band-lu if you wish to live, for I am in a hurry. + +"But why do you wish to kill me?" I asked. + +He looked puzzled and finally gave it up. "I do not know," +he admitted. "It is the way in Caspak. If we do not kill, we +shall be killed, therefore it is wise to kill first whomever +does not belong to one's own people. This morning I hid in my +cave till the others were gone upon the hunt, for I knew that +they would know at once that I had become a Kro-lu and would +kill me. They will kill me if they find me in the coslupak; +so will the Kro-lu if they come upon me before I have won my +Kro-lu weapons and jerkin. You would kill me if you could, and +that is the reason I know that you speak lies when you say that +your weapons will kill at a great distance. Would they, you +would long since have killed me. Come! I have no more time to +waste in words. I will spare the woman and take her with me to +the Kro-lu, for she is comely." And with that he advanced upon +me with raised spear. + +My rifle was at my hip at the ready. He was so close that I did +not need to raise it to my shoulder, having but to pull the trigger +to send him into Kingdom Come whenever I chose; but yet I hesitated. +It was difficult to bring myself to take a human life. I could +feel no enmity toward this savage barbarian who acted almost as +wholly upon instinct as might a wild beast, and to the last moment +I was determined to seek some way to avoid what now seemed inevitable. +Ajor stood at my shoulder, her knife ready in her hand and a sneer +on her lips at his suggestion that he would take her with him. + +Just as I thought I should have to fire, a chorus of screams +broke from the women beneath us. I saw the man halt and glance +downward, and following his example my eyes took in the panic +and its cause. The women had, evidently, been quitting the +pool and slowly returning toward the caves, when they were +confronted by a monstrous cave-lion which stood directly +between them and their cliffs in the center of the narrow +path that led down to the pool among the tumbled rocks. +Screaming, the women were rushing madly back to the pool. + +"It will do them no good," remarked the man, a trace of +excitement in his voice. "It will do them no good, for the +lion will wait until they come out and take as many as he can +carry away; and there is one there," he added, a trace of +sadness in his tone, "whom I hoped would soon follow me to +the Kro-lu. Together have we come up from the beginning." +He raised his spear above his head and poised it ready to hurl +downward at the lion. "She is nearest to him," he muttered. +"He will get her and she will never come to me among the +Kro-lu, or ever thereafter. It is useless! No warrior lives +who could hurl a weapon so great a distance." + +But even as he spoke, I was leveling my rifle upon the great +brute below; and as he ceased speaking, I squeezed the trigger. +My bullet must have struck to a hair the point at which I had +aimed, for it smashed the brute's spine back of his shoulders +and tore on through his heart, dropping him dead in his tracks. +For a moment the women were as terrified by the report of the +rifle as they had been by the menace of the lion; but when they +saw that the loud noise had evidently destroyed their enemy, +they came creeping cautiously back to examine the carcass. + +The man, toward whom I had immediately turned after firing, +lest he should pursue his threatened attack, stood staring at +me in amazement and admiration. + +"Why," he asked, "if you could do that, did you not kill me +long before?" + +"I told you," I replied, "that I had no quarrel with you. I do +not care to kill men with whom I have no quarrel." + +But he could not seem to get the idea through his head. "I can +believe now that you are not of Caspak," he admitted, "for no +Caspakian would have permitted such an opportunity to escape him." +This, however, I found later to be an exaggeration, as the tribes +of the west coast and even the Kro-lu of the east coast are far +less bloodthirsty than he would have had me believe. "And your +weapon!" he continued. "You spoke true words when I thought you +spoke lies." And then, suddenly: "Let us be friends!" + +I turned to Ajor. "Can I trust him?" I asked. + +"Yes," she replied. "Why not? Has he not asked to be friends?" + +I was not at the time well enough acquainted with Caspakian +ways to know that truthfulness and loyalty are two of the +strongest characteristics of these primitive people. They are +not sufficiently cultured to have become adept in hypocrisy, +treason and dissimulation. There are, of course, a few exceptions. + +"We can go north together," continued the warrior. "I will +fight for you, and you can fight for me. Until death will I +serve you, for you have saved So-al, whom I had given up as dead." +He threw down his spear and covered both his eyes with the palms +of his two hands. I looked inquiringly toward Ajor, who +explained as best she could that this was the form of the +Caspakian oath of allegiance. "You need never fear him after +this," she concluded. + +"What should I do?" I asked. + +"Take his hands down from before his eyes and return his spear +to him," she explained. + +I did as she bade, and the man seemed very pleased. I then +asked what I should have done had I not wished to accept +his friendship. They told me that had I walked away, the moment +that I was out of sight of the warrior we would have become +deadly enemies again. "But I could so easily have killed him +as he stood there defenseless!" I exclaimed. + +"Yes," replied the warrior, "but no man with good sense blinds +his eyes before one whom he does not trust." + +It was rather a decent compliment, and it taught me just how +much I might rely on the loyalty of my new friend. I was glad +to have him with us, for he knew the country and was evidently +a fearless warrior. I wished that I might have recruited a +battalion like him. + +As the women were now approaching the cliffs, Tomar the warrior +suggested that we make our way to the valley before they could +intercept us, as they might attempt to detain us and were +almost certain to set upon Ajor. So we hastened down the +narrow path, reaching the foot of the cliffs but a short +distance ahead of the women. They called after us to stop; but +we kept on at a rapid walk, not wishing to have any trouble +with them, which could only result in the death of some of them. + +We had proceeded about a mile when we heard some one behind us +calling To-mar by name, and when we stopped and looked around, +we saw a woman running rapidly toward us. As she approached +nearer I could see that she was a very comely creature, and +like all her sex that I had seen in Caspak, apparently young. + +"It is So-al!" exclaimed To-mar. "Is she mad that she follows +me thus?" + +In another moment the young woman stopped, panting, before us. +She paid not the slightest attention to Ajor or me; but +devouring To-mar with her sparkling eyes, she cried: "I have +risen! I have risen!" + +"So-al!" was all that the man could say. + +"Yes," she went on, "the call came to me just before I quit the +pool; but I did not know that it had come to you. I can see it +in your eyes, To-mar, my To-mar! We shall go on together!" +And she threw herself into his arms. + +It was a very affecting sight, for it was evident that these +two had been mates for a long time and that they had each +thought that they were about to be separated by that strange +law of evolution which holds good in Caspak and which was +slowly unfolding before my incredulous mind. I did not then +comprehend even a tithe of the wondrous process, which goes on +eternally within the confines of Caprona's barrier cliffs nor +am I any too sure that I do even now. + +To-mar explained to So-al that it was I who had killed the +cave-lion and saved her life, and that Ajor was my woman and +thus entitled to the same loyalty which was my due. + +At first Ajor and So-al were like a couple of stranger cats on +a back fence but soon they began to accept each other under +something of an armed truce, and later became fast friends. +So-al was a mighty fine-looking girl, built like a tigress as +to strength and sinuosity, but withal sweet and womanly. +Ajor and I came to be very fond of her, and she was, I think, +equally fond of us. To-mar was very much of a man--a savage, if +you will, but none the less a man. + +Finding that traveling in company with To-mar made our journey +both easier and safer, Ajor and I did not continue on our way +alone while the novitiates delayed their approach to the Kro-lu +country in order that they might properly fit themselves in the +matter of arms and apparel, but remained with them. Thus we +became well acquainted--to such an extent that we looked +forward with regret to the day when they took their places +among their new comrades and we should be forced to continue +upon our way alone. It was a matter of much concern to To-mar +that the Krolu would undoubtedly not receive Ajor and me in a +friendly manner, and that consequently we should have to avoid +these people. + +It would have been very helpful to us could we have made +friends with them, as their country abutted directly upon that +of the Galus. Their friendship would have meant that Ajor's +dangers were practically passed, and that I had accomplished +fully one-half of my long journey. In view of what I had +passed through, I often wondered what chance I had to complete +that journey in search of my friends. The further south I +should travel on the west side of the island, the more +frightful would the dangers become as I neared the stamping- +grounds of the more hideous reptilia and the haunts of +the Alus and the Ho-lu, all of which were at the southern half +of the island; and then if I should not find the members of my +party, what was to become of me? I could not live for long in +any portion of Caspak with which I was familiar; the moment my +ammunition was exhausted, I should be as good as dead. + +There was a chance that the Galus would receive me; but even +Ajor could not say definitely whether they would or not, and +even provided that they would, could I retrace my steps from +the beginning, after failing to find my own people, and return +to the far northern land of Galus? I doubted it. However, I +was learning from Ajor, who was more or less of a fatalist, a +philosophy which was as necessary in Caspak to peace of mind as +is faith to the devout Christian of the outer world. + + + +Chapter 5 + +We were sitting before a little fire inside a safe grotto one +night shortly after we had quit the cliff-dwellings of the +Band-lu, when So-al raised a question which it had never +occurred to me to propound to Ajor. She asked her why she had +left her own people and how she had come so far south as the +country of the Alus, where I had found her. + +At first Ajor hesitated to explain; but at last she consented, +and for the first time I heard the complete story of her origin +and experiences. For my benefit she entered into greater +detail of explanation than would have been necessary had I been +a native Caspakian. + +"I am a cos-ata-lo," commenced Ajor, and then she turned +toward me. "A cos-ata-lo, my Tom, is a woman" (lo) +"who did not come from an egg and thus on up from the beginning." +(Cor sva jo.) "I was a babe at my mother's breast. Only among +the Galus are such, and then but infrequently. The Wieroo get +most of us; but my mother hid me until I had attained such size +that the Wieroo could not readily distinguish me from one who +had come up from the beginning. I knew both my mother and my +father, as only such as I may. My father is high chief among +the Galus. His name is Jor, and both he and my mother came up +from the beginning; but one of them, probably my mother, had +completed the seven cycles" (approximately seven hundred years), +"with the result that their offspring might be cos-ata-lo, +or born as are all the children of your race, my Tom, as you +tell me is the fact. I was therefore apart from my fellows in +that my children would probably be as I, of a higher state of +evolution, and so I was sought by the men of my people; but +none of them appealed to me. I cared for none. The most +persistent was Du-seen, a huge warrior of whom my father stood +in considerable fear, since it was quite possible that Du-seen +could wrest from him his chieftainship of the Galus. He has a +large following of the newer Galus, those most recently come up +from the Kro-lu, and as this class is usually much more +powerful numerically than the older Galus, and as Du-seen's +ambition knows no bounds, we have for a long time been +expecting him to find some excuse for a break with Jor the High +Chief, my father. + +"A further complication lay in the fact that Duseen wanted me, +while I would have none of him, and then came evidence to my +father's ears that he was in league with the Wieroo; a hunter, +returning late at night, came trembling to my father, saying +that he had seen Du-seen talking with a Wieroo in a lonely spot +far from the village, and that plainly he had heard the words: +`If you will help me, I will help you--I will deliver into your +hands all cos-ata-lo among the Galus, now and hereafter; +but for that service you must slay Jor the High Chief and bring +terror and confusion to his followers.' + +"Now, when my father heard this, he was angry; but he was also +afraid--afraid for me, who am cosata-lo. He called me to +him and told me what he had heard, pointing out two ways in +which we might frustrate Du-seen. The first was that I go to +Du-seen as his mate, after which he would be loath to give me +into the hands of the Wieroo or to further abide by the wicked +compact he had made--a compact which would doom his own +offspring, who would doubtless be as am I, their mother. +The alternative was flight until Du-seen should have been overcome +and punished. I chose the latter and fled toward the south. +Beyond the confines of the Galu country is little danger from +the Wieroo, who seek ordinarily only Galus of the highest orders. +There are two excellent reasons for this: One is that from +the beginning of time jealousy had existed between the Wieroo +and the Galus as to which would eventually dominate the world. +It seems generally conceded that that race which first +reaches a point of evolution which permits them to produce +young of their own species and of both sexes must dominate all +other creatures. The Wieroo first began to produce their own +kind--after which evolution from Galu to Wieroo ceased +gradually until now it is unknown; but the Wieroo produce only +males--which is why they steal our female young, and by stealing +cos-ata-lo they increase their own chances of eventually +reproducing both sexes and at the same time lessen ours. +Already the Galus produce both male and female; but so +carefully do the Wieroo watch us that few of the males ever +grow to manhood, while even fewer are the females that are not +stolen away. It is indeed a strange condition, for while our +greatest enemies hate and fear us, they dare not exterminate +us, knowing that they too would become extinct but for us. + +"Ah, but could we once get a start, I am sure that when all +were true cos-ata-lo there would have been evolved at last +the true dominant race before which all the world would be +forced to bow." + +Ajor always spoke of the world as though nothing existed +beyond Caspak. She could not seem to grasp the truth of my +origin or the fact that there were countless other peoples +outside her stern barrier-cliffs. She apparently felt that +I came from an entirely different world. Where it was and +how I came to Caspak from it were matters quite beyond her +with which she refused to trouble her pretty head. + +"Well," she continued, "and so I ran away to hide, intending +to pass the cliffs to the south of Galu and find a retreat in +the Kro-lu country. It would be dangerous, but there seemed no +other way. + +"The third night I took refuge in a large cave in the cliffs at +the edge of my own country; upon the following day I would +cross over into the Kro-lu country, where I felt that I should +be reasonably safe from the Wieroo, though menaced by countless +other dangers. However, to a cos-ata-lo any fate is +preferable to that of falling into the clutches of the +frightful Wieroo, from whose land none returns. + +"I had been sleeping peacefully for several hours when I was +awakened by a slight noise within the cavern. The moon was +shining brightly, illumining the entrance, against which I saw +silhouetted the dread figure of a Wieroo. There was no escape. +The cave was shallow, the entrance narrow. I lay very still, +hoping against hope, that the creature had but paused here to +rest and might soon depart without discovering me; yet all the +while I knew that he came seeking me. + +"I waited, scarce breathing, watching the thing creep +stealthily toward me, its great eyes luminous in the darkness +of the cave's interior, and at last I knew that those eyes were +directed upon me, for the Wieroo can see in the darkness better +than even the lion or the tiger. But a few feet separated us +when I sprang to my feet and dashed madly toward my menacer in +a vain effort to dodge past him and reach the outside world. +It was madness of course, for even had I succeeded temporarily, +the Wieroo would have but followed and swooped down upon me +from above. As it was, he reached forth and seized me, and +though I struggled, he overpowered me. In the duel his long, +white robe was nearly torn from him, and he became very angry, +so that he trembled and beat his wings together in his rage. + +"He asked me my name; but I would not answer him, and that +angered him still more. At last he dragged me to the entrance +of the cave, lifted me in his arms, spread his great wings and +leaping into the air, flapped dismally through the night. +I saw the moonlit landscape sliding away beneath me, and then +we were out above the sea and on our way to Oo-oh, the country +of the Wieroo. + +"The dim outlines of Oo-oh were unfolding below us when there +came from above a loud whirring of giant wings. The Wieroo and +I glanced up simultaneously, to see a pair of huge jo-oos" +(flying reptiles--pterodactyls) "swooping down upon us. The Wieroo +wheeled and dropped almost to sea-level, and then raced southward +in an effort to outdistance our pursuers. The great creatures, +notwithstanding their enormous weight, are swift on their wings; +but the Wieroo are swifter. Even with my added weight, the +creature that bore me maintained his lead, though he could not +increase it. Faster than the fastest wind we raced through the +night, southward along the coast. Sometimes we rose to great +heights, where the air was chill and the world below but a blur +of dim outlines; but always the jo-oos stuck behind us. + +"I knew that we had covered a great distance, for the rush of +the wind by my face attested the speed of our progress, but I +had no idea where we were when at last I realized that the +Wieroo was weakening. One of the jo-oos gained on us and +succeeded in heading us, so that my captor had to turn in +toward the coast. Further and further they forced him to the +left; lower and lower he sank. More labored was his breathing, +and weaker the stroke of his once powerful wings. We were not +ten feet above the ground when they overtook us, and at the +edge of a forest. One of them seized the Wieroo by his right +wing, and in an effort to free himself, he loosed his grasp +upon me, dropping me to earth. Like a frightened ecca I +leaped to my feet and raced for the sheltering sanctuary of the +forest, where I knew neither could follow or seize me. Then I +turned and looked back to see two great reptiles tear my +abductor asunder and devour him on the spot. + +"I was saved; yet I felt that I was lost. How far I was from +the country of the Galus I could not guess; nor did it seem +probable that I ever could make my way in safety to my native land. + +"Day was breaking; soon the carnivora would stalk forth for +their first kill; I was armed only with my knife. About me was +a strange landscape--the flowers, the trees, the grasses, even, +were different from those of my northern world, and presently +there appeared before me a creature fully as hideous as the +Wieroo--a hairy manthing that barely walked erect. I shuddered, +and then I fled. Through the hideous dangers that my forebears +had endured in the earlier stages of their human evolution I +fled; and always pursuing was the hairy monster that had +discovered me. Later he was joined by others of his kind. +They were the speechless men, the Alus, from whom you rescued +me, my Tom. From then on, you know the story of my adventures, +and from the first, I would endure them all again because they +led me to you!" + +It was very nice of her to say that, and I appreciated it. +I felt that she was a mighty nice little girl whose friendship +anyone might be glad to have; but I wished that when she +touched me, those peculiar thrills would not run through me. +It was most discomforting, because it reminded me of love; and +I knew that I never could love this half-baked little barbarian. +I was very much interested in her account of the Wieroo, which +up to this time I had considered a purely mythological creature; +but Ajor shuddered so at even the veriest mention of the name +that I was loath to press the subject upon her, and so the +Wieroo still remained a mystery to me. + +While the Wieroo interested me greatly, I had little time to +think about them, as our waking hours were filled with the +necessities of existence--the constant battle for survival +which is the chief occupation of Caspakians. To-mar and So-al +were now about fitted for their advent into Kro-lu society and +must therefore leave us, as we could not accompany them without +incurring great danger ourselves and running the chance of +endangering them; but each swore to be always our friend and +assured us that should we need their aid at any time we had but +to ask it; nor could I doubt their sincerity, since we had been +so instrumental in bringing them safely upon their journey +toward the Kro-lu village. + +This was our last day together. In the afternoon we should +separate, To-mar and So-al going directly to the Kro-lu +village, while Ajor and I made a detour to avoid a conflict +with the archers. The former both showed evidence of nervous +apprehension as the time approached for them to make their +entry into the village of their new people, and yet both were +very proud and happy. They told us that they would be well +received as additions to a tribe always are welcomed, and the +more so as the distance from the beginning increased, the +higher tribes or races being far weaker numerically than +the lower. The southern end of the island fairly swarms with the +Ho-lu, or apes; next above these are the Alus, who are slightly +fewer in number than the Ho-lu; and again there are fewer Bolu +than Alus, and fewer Sto-lu than Bo-lu. Thus it goes until the +Kro-lu are fewer in number than any of the others; and here the +law reverses, for the Galus outnumber the Kro-lu. As Ajor +explained it to me, the reason for this is that as evolution +practically ceases with the Galus, there is no less among them +on this score, for even the cos-ata-lo are still considered +Galus and remain with them. And Galus come up both from the +west and east coasts. There are, too, fewer carnivorous +reptiles at the north end of the island, and not so many of the +great and ferocious members of the cat family as take their +hideous toll of life among the races further south. + +By now I was obtaining some idea of the Caspakian scheme of +evolution, which partly accounted for the lack of young among +the races I had so far seen. Coming up from the beginning, the +Caspakian passes, during a single existence, through the various +stages of evolution, or at least many of them, through which the +human race has passed during the countless ages since life first +stirred upon a new world; but the question which continued to +puzzle me was: What creates life at the beginning, cor sva jo? + +I had noticed that as we traveled northward from the Alus' +country the land had gradually risen until we were now several +hundred feet above the level of the inland sea. Ajor told me +that the Galus country was still higher and considerably colder, +which accounted for the scarcity of reptiles. The change in +form and kinds of the lower animals was even more marked than +the evolutionary stages of man. The diminutive ecca, or +small horse, became a rough-coated and sturdy little pony in +the Kro-lu country. I saw a greater number of small lions +and tigers, though many of the huge ones still persisted, +while the woolly mammoth was more in evidence, as were several +varieties of the Labyrinthadonta. These creatures, from which +God save me, I should have expected to find further south; but +for some unaccountable reason they gain their greatest bulk in +the Kro-lu and Galu countries, though fortunately they are rare. +I rather imagine that they are a very early life which is +rapidly nearing extinction in Caspak, though wherever they +are found, they constitute a menace to all forms of life. + +It was mid-afternoon when To-mar and So-al bade us good-bye. +We were not far from Kro-lu village; in fact, we had approached +it much closer than we had intended, and now Ajor and I were to +make a detour toward the sea while our companions went directly +in search of the Kro-lu chief. + +Ajor and I had gone perhaps a mile or two and were just about +to emerge from a dense wood when I saw that ahead of us which +caused me to draw back into concealment, at the same time +pushing Ajor behind me. What I saw was a party of Band-lu +warriors--large, fierce-appearing men. From the direction of +their march I saw that they were returning to their caves, and +that if we remained where we were, they would pass without +discovering us. + +Presently Ajor nudged me. "They have a prisoner," she whispered. +"He is a Kro-lu." + +And then I saw him, the first fully developed Krolu I had seen. +He was a fine-looking savage, tall and straight with a regal carriage. +To-mar was a handsome fellow; but this Kro-lu showed plainly in +his every physical attribute a higher plane of evolution. +While To-mar was just entering the Kro-lu sphere, this man, +it seemed to me, must be close indeed to the next stage of +his development, which would see him an envied Galu. + +"They will kill him?" I whispered to Ajor. + +"The dance of death," she replied, and I shuddered, so recently +had I escaped the same fate. It seemed cruel that one who must +have passed safely up through all the frightful stages of human +evolution within Caspak, should die at the very foot of his goal. +I raised my rifle to my shoulder and took careful aim at one of +the Band-lu. If I hit him, I would hit two, for another was +directly behind the first. + +Ajor touched my arm. "What would you do?" she asked. "They are +all our enemies." + +"I am going to save him from the dance of death," I replied, +"enemy or no enemy," and I squeezed the trigger. At the +report, the two Band-lu lunged forward upon their faces. +I handed my rifle to Ajor, and drawing my pistol, stepped out +in full view of the startled party. The Band-lu did not run +away as had some of the lower orders of Caspakians at the sound +of the rifle. Instead, the moment they saw me, they let out a +series of demoniac war-cries, and raising their spears above +their heads, charged me. + +The Kro-lu stood silent and statuesque, watching the proceedings. +He made no attempt to escape, though his feet were not bound +and none of the warriors remained to guard him. There were +ten of the Band-lu coming for me. I dropped three of them +with my pistol as rapidly as a man might count by three, and +then my rifle spoke close to my left shoulder, and another of +them stumbled and rolled over and over upon the ground. +Plucky little Ajor! She had never fired a shot before in all +her life, though I had taught her to sight and aim and how to +squeeze the trigger instead of pulling it. She had practiced +these new accomplishments often, but little had I thought they +would make a marksman of her so quickly. + +With six of their fellows put out of the fight so easily, the +remaining six sought cover behind some low bushes and commenced +a council of war. I wished that they would go away, as I had +no ammunition to waste, and I was fearful that should they +institute another charge, some of them would reach us, for they +were already quite close. Suddenly one of them rose and +launched his spear. It was the most marvelous exhibition of +speed I have ever witnessed. It seemed to me that he had +scarce gained an upright position when the weapon was half-way +upon its journey, speeding like an arrow toward Ajor. And then +it was, with that little life in danger, that I made the best +shot I have ever made in my life! I took no conscious aim; it +was as though my subconscious mind, impelled by a stronger +power even than that of self-preservation, directed my hand. +Ajor was in danger! Simultaneously with the thought my pistol +flew to position, a streak of incandescent powder marked the +path of the bullet from its muzzle; and the spear, its point +shattered, was deflected from its path. With a howl of dismay +the six Band-lu rose from their shelter and raced away toward +the south. + +I turned toward Ajor. She was very white and wide-eyed, for +the clutching fingers of death had all but seized her; but a +little smile came to her lips and an expression of great pride +to her eyes. "My Tom!" she said, and took my hand in hers. +That was all--"My Tom!" and a pressure of the hand. Her Tom! +Something stirred within my bosom. Was it exaltation or was it +consternation? Impossible! I turned away almost brusquely. + +"Come!" I said, and strode off toward the Kro-lu prisoner. + +The Kro-lu stood watching us with stolid indifference. +I presume that he expected to be killed; but if he did, he showed +no outward sign of fear. His eyes, indicating his greatest +interest, were fixed upon my pistol or the rifle which Ajor +still carried. I cut his bonds with my knife. As I did so, an +expression of surprise tinged and animated the haughty reserve +of his countenance. He eyed me quizzically. + +"What are you going to do with me?" he asked. + +"You are free," I replied. "Go home, if you wish." + +"Why don't you kill me?" he inquired. "I am defenseless." + +"Why should I kill you? I have risked my life and that of this +young lady to save your life. Why, therefore should I now take it?" +Of course, I didn't say "young lady" as there is no Caspakian +equivalent for that term; but I have to allow myself considerable +latitude in the translation of Caspakian conversations. To speak +always of a beautiful young girl as a "she" may be literal; but +it seems far from gallant. + +The Kro-lu concentrated his steady, level gaze upon me for at +least a full minute. Then he spoke again. + +"Who are you, man of strange skins?" he asked. "Your she is +Galu; but you are neither Galu nor Krolu nor Band-lu, nor any +other sort of man which I have seen before. Tell me from +whence comes so mighty a warrior and so generous a foe." + +"It is a long story," I replied, "but suffice it to say that I +am not of Caspak. I am a stranger here, and--let this sink +in--I am not a foe. I have no wish to be an enemy of any man +in Caspak, with the possible exception of the Galu warrior Du-seen." + +"Du-seen!" he exclaimed. "You are an enemy of Du-seen? And why?" + +"Because he would harm Ajor," I replied. "You know him?" + +"He cannot know him," said Ajor. "Du-seen rose from the Kro-lu +long ago, taking a new name, as all do when they enter a new sphere. +He cannot know him, as there is no intercourse between the Kro-lu +and the Galu." + +The warrior smiled. "Du-seen rose not so long ago," he said, +"that I do not recall him well, and recently he has taken it +upon himself to abrogate the ancient laws of Caspak; he had had +intercourse with the Kro-lu. Du-seen would be chief of the +Galus, and he has come to the Kro-lu for help. + +Ajor was aghast. The thing was incredible. Never had Kro-lu +and Galu had friendly relations; by the savage laws of Caspak +they were deadly enemies, for only so can the several races +maintain their individuality. + +"Will the Kro-lu join him?" asked Ajor. "Will they invade the +country of Jor my father?" + +"The younger Kro-lu favor the plan," replied the warrior, +"since they believe they will thus become Galus immediately. +They hope to span the long years of change through which they +must pass in the ordinary course of events and at a single +stride become Galus. We of the older Kro-lu tell them that +though they occupy the land of the Galu and wear the skins and +ornaments of the golden people, still they will not be Galus +till the time arrives that they are ripe to rise. We also tell +them that even then they will never become a true Galu race, +since there will still be those among them who can never rise. +It is all right to raid the Galu country occasionally for +plunder, as our people do; but to attempt to conquer it and +hold it is madness. For my part, I have been content to wait +until the call came to me. I feel that it cannot now be long." + +"What is your name?" asked Ajor. + +"Chal-az, " replied the man. + +"You are chief of the Kro-lu?" Ajor continued. + +"No, it is Al-tan who is chief of the Kro-lu of the east," +answered Chal-az. + +"And he is against this plan to invade my father's country?" + +"Unfortunately he is rather in favor of it," replied the man, +"since he has about come to the conclusion that he is batu. +He has been chief ever since, before I came up from the +Band-lu, and I can see no change in him in all those years. +In fact, he still appears to be more Band-lu than Kro-lu. +However, he is a good chief and a mighty warrior, and if +Du-seen persuades him to his cause, the Galus may find +themselves under a Kro-lu chieftain before long--Du-seen as +well as the others, for Al-tan would never consent to occupy a +subordinate position, and once he plants a victorious foot in +Galu, he will not withdraw it without a struggle." + +I asked them what batu meant, as I had not before heard +the word. Literally translated, it is equivalent to through, +finished, done-for, as applied to an individual's evolutionary +progress in Caspak, and with this information was developed the +interesting fact that not every individual is capable of rising +through every stage to that of Galu. Some never progress +beyond the Alu stage; others stop as Bo-lu, as Sto-lu, as +Bandlu or as Kro-lu. The Ho-lu of the first generation may +rise to become Alus; the Alus of the second generation may +become Bo-lu, while it requires three generations of Bo-lu to +become Band-lu, and so on until Kro-lu's parent on one side +must be of the sixth generation. + +It was not entirely plain to me even with this explanation, +since I couldn't understand how there could be different +generations of peoples who apparently had no offspring. Yet I +was commencing to get a slight glimmer of the strange laws +which govern propagation and evolution in this weird land. +Already I knew that the warm pools which always lie close to +every tribal abiding-place were closely linked with the +Caspakian scheme of evolution, and that the daily immersion of +the females in the greenish slimy water was in response to some +natural law, since neither pleasure nor cleanliness could be +derived from what seemed almost a religious rite. Yet I was +still at sea; nor, seemingly, could Ajor enlighten me, since +she was compelled to use words which I could not understand and +which it was impossible for her to explain the meanings of. + +As we stood talking, we were suddenly startled by a commotion +in the bushes and among the boles of the trees surrounding us, +and simultaneously a hundred Kro-lu warriors appeared in a +rough circle about us. They greeted Chal-az with a volley of +questions as they approached slowly from all sides, their heavy +bows fitted with long, sharp arrows. Upon Ajor and me they +looked with covetousness in the one instance and suspicion in +the other; but after they had heard Chal-az's story, their +attitude was more friendly. A huge savage did all the talking. +He was a mountain of a man, yet perfectly proportioned. + +"This is Al-tan the chief," said Chal-az by way of introduction. +Then he told something of my story, and Al-tan asked me many +questions of the land from which I came. The warriors crowded +around close to hear my replies, and there were many expressions +of incredulity as I spoke of what was to them another world, of +the yacht which had brought me over vast waters, and of the +plane that had borne me Jo-oo-like over the summit of the +barrier-cliffs. It was the mention of the hydroaeroplane +which precipitated the first outspoken skepticism, and then +Ajor came to my defense. + +"I saw it with my own eyes!" she exclaimed. "I saw him flying +through the air in battle with a Jo-oo. The Alus were chasing +me, and they saw and ran away." + +"Whose is this she?" demanded Al-tan suddenly, his eyes fixed +fiercely upon Ajor. + +For a moment there was silence. Ajor looked up at me, a hurt +and questioning expression on her face. "Whose she is this?" +repeated Al-tan. + +"She is mine," I replied, though what force it was that +impelled me to say it I could not have told; but an instant +later I was glad that I had spoken the words, for the reward +of Ajor's proud and happy face was reward indeed. + +Al-tan eyed her for several minutes and then turned to me. +"Can you keep her?" he asked, just the tinge of a sneer upon +his face. + +I laid my palm upon the grip of my pistol and answered that +I could. He saw the move, glanced at the butt of the automatic +where it protruded from its holster, and smiled. Then he +turned and raising his great bow, fitted an arrow and drew the +shaft far back. His warriors, supercilious smiles upon their +faces, stood silently watching him. His bow was the longest +and the heaviest among them all. A mighty man indeed must he +be to bend it; yet Al-tan drew the shaft back until the stone +point touched his left forefinger, and he did it with +consummate ease. Then he raised the shaft to the level of +his right eye, held it there for an instant and released it. +When the arrow stopped, half its length protruded from the +opposite side of a six-inch tree fifty feet away. Al-tan and +his warriors turned toward me with expressions of immense +satisfaction upon their faces, and then, apparently for Ajor's +benefit, the chieftain swaggered to and fro a couple of times, +swinging his great arms and his bulky shoulders for all the +world like a drunken prize-fighter at a beach dancehall. + +I saw that some reply was necessary, and so in a single motion, +I drew my gun, dropped it on the still quivering arrow and +pulled the trigger. At the sound of the report, the Kro-lu +leaped back and raised their weapons; but as I was smiling, +they took heart and lowered them again, following my eyes to +the tree; the shaft of their chief was gone, and through the +bole was a little round hole marking the path of my bullet. +It was a good shot if I do say it myself, "as shouldn't" but +necessity must have guided that bullet; I simply had to +make a good shot, that I might immediately establish my position +among those savage and warlike Caspakians of the sixth sphere. +That it had its effect was immediately noticeable, but I am none +too sure that it helped my cause with Al-tan. Whereas he might +have condescended to tolerate me as a harmless and interesting +curiosity, he now, by the change in his expression, appeared to +consider me in a new and unfavorable light. Nor can I wonder, +knowing this type as I did, for had I not made him ridiculous +in the eyes of his warriors, beating him at his own game? +What king, savage or civilized, could condone such impudence? +Seeing his black scowls, I deemed it expedient, especially on +Ajor's account, to terminate the interview and continue upon +our way; but when I would have done so, Al-tan detained us with +a gesture, and his warriors pressed around us. + +"What is the meaning of this?" I demanded, and before Al-tan +could reply, Chal-az raised his voice in our behalf. + +"Is this the gratitude of a Kro-lu chieftain, Al-tan," he +asked, "to one who has served you by saving one of your +warriors from the enemy--saving him from the death dance of +the Band-lu?" + +Al-tan was silent for a moment, and then his brow cleared, and +the faint imitation of a pleasant expression struggled for +existence as he said: "The stranger will not be harmed. +I wished only to detain him that he may be feasted tonight in +the village of Al-tan the Kro-lu. In the morning he may go +his way. Al-tan will not hinder him." + +I was not entirely reassured; but I wanted to see the interior +of the Kro-lu village, and anyway I knew that if Al-tan +intended treachery I would be no more in his power in the +morning than I now was--in fact, during the night I might +find opportunity to escape with Ajor, while at the instant +neither of us could hope to escape unscathed from the +encircling warriors. Therefore, in order to disarm him of +any thought that I might entertain suspicion as to his +sincerity, I promptly and courteously accepted his invitation. +His satisfaction was evident, and as we set off toward his village, +he walked beside me, asking many questions as to the country +from which I came, its peoples and their customs. He seemed +much mystified by the fact that we could walk abroad by day or +night without fear of being devoured by wild beasts or savage +reptiles, and when I told him of the great armies which we +maintained, his simple mind could not grasp the fact that they +existed solely for the slaughtering of human beings. + +"I am glad," he said, "that I do not dwell in your country +among such savage peoples. Here, in Caspak, men fight with men +when they meet--men of different races--but their weapons are +first for the slaying of beasts in the chase and in defense. +We do not fashion weapons solely for the killing of man as do +your peoples. Your country must indeed be a savage country, +from which you are fortunate to have escaped to the peace and +security of Caspak." + +Here was a new and refreshing viewpoint; nor could I take +exception to it after what I had told Altan of the great war +which had been raging in Europe for over two years before I +left home. + +On the march to the Kro-lu village we were continually stalked +by innumerable beasts of prey, and three times we were attacked +by frightful creatures; but Altan took it all as a matter of +course, rushing forward with raised spear or sending a heavy +shaft into the body of the attacker and then returning to our +conversation as though no interruption had occurred. Twice were +members of his band mauled, and one was killed by a huge and +bellicose rhinoceros; but the instant the action was over, +it was as though it never had occurred. The dead man was +stripped of his belongings and left where he had died; the +carnivora would take care of his burial. The trophies that +these Kro-lu left to the meat-eaters would have turned an +English big-game hunter green with envy. They did, it is true, +cut all the edible parts from the rhino and carry them home; +but already they were pretty well weighted down with the spoils +of the chase, and only the fact that they are particularly fond +of rhino-meat caused them to do so. + +They left the hide on the pieces they selected, as they use it +for sandals, shield-covers, the hilts of their knives and +various other purposes where tough hide is desirable. I was +much interested in their shields, especially after I saw one +used in defense against the attack of a saber-tooth tiger. +The huge creature had charged us without warning from a clump of +dense bushes where it was lying up after eating. It was met +with an avalanche of spears, some of which passed entirely +through its body, with such force were they hurled. The charge +was from a very short distance, requiring the use of the spear +rather than the bow and arrow; but after the launching of the +spears, the men not directly in the path of the charge sent bolt +after bolt into the great carcass with almost incredible rapidity. +The beast, screaming with pain and rage, bore down upon Chal-az +while I stood helpless with my rifle for fear of hitting one of +the warriors who were closing in upon it. But Chal-az was ready. +Throwing aside his bow, he crouched behind his large oval shield, +in the center of which was a hole about six inches in diameter. +The shield was held by tight loops to his left arm, while in his +right hand he grasped his heavy knife. Bristling with spears +and arrows, the great cat hurled itself upon the shield, and down +went Chal-az upon his back with the shield entirely covering him. +The tiger clawed and bit at the heavy rhinoceros hide with which +the shield was faced, while Chal-az, through the round hole in +the shield's center, plunged his blade repeatedly into the vitals +of the savage animal. Doubtless the battle would have gone to +Chal-az even though I had not interfered; but the moment that I +saw a clean opening, with no Kro-lu beyond, I raised my rifle and +killed the beast. + +When Chal-az arose, he glanced at the sky and remarked that it +looked like rain. The others already had resumed the march +toward the village. The incident was closed. For some +unaccountable reason the whole thing reminded me of a friend +who once shot a cat in his backyard. For three weeks he talked +of nothing else. + +It was almost dark when we reached the village--a large +palisaded enclosure of several hundred leaf-thatched huts set +in groups of from two to seven. The huts were hexagonal in +form, and where grouped were joined so that they resembled the +cells of a bee-hive. One hut meant a warrior and his mate, and +each additional hut in a group indicated an additional female. +The palisade which surrounded the village was of logs set close +together and woven into a solid wall with tough creepers which +were planted at their base and trained to weave in and out to +bind the logs together. The logs slanted outward at an angle +of about thirty degrees, in which position they were held by +shorter logs embedded in the ground at right angles to them and +with their upper ends supporting the longer pieces a trifle +above their centers of equilibrium. Along the top of the +palisade sharpened stakes had been driven at all sorts of angles. + +The only opening into the inclosure was through a small +aperture three feet wide and three feet high, which was closed +from the inside by logs about six feet long laid horizontally, +one upon another, between the inside face of the palisade and +two other braced logs which paralleled the face of the wall +upon the inside. + +As we entered the village, we were greeted by a not unfriendly +crowd of curious warriors and women, to whom Chal-az generously +explained the service we had rendered him, whereupon they +showered us with the most well-meant attentions, for Chal-az, it +seemed, was a most popular member of the tribe. Necklaces of +lion and tiger-teeth, bits of dried meat, finely tanned hides +and earthen pots, beautifully decorated, they thrust upon us +until we were loaded down, and all the while Al-tan glared +balefully upon us, seemingly jealous of the attentions heaped +upon us because we had served Chal-az. + +At last we reached a hut that they set apart for us, and there +we cooked our meat and some vegetables the women brought us, +and had milk from cows--the first I had had in Caspak--and +cheese from the milk of wild goats, with honey and thin bread +made from wheat flour of their own grinding, and grapes and the +fermented juice of grapes. It was quite the most wonderful +meal I had eaten since I quit the Toreador and Bowen J. +Tyler's colored chef, who could make pork-chops taste like +chicken, and chicken taste like heaven. + + + +Chapter 6 + +After dinner I rolled a cigaret and stretched myself at ease +upon a pile of furs before the doorway, with Ajor's head +pillowed in my lap and a feeling of great content pervading me. +It was the first time since my plane had topped the barrier- +cliffs of Caspak that I had felt any sense of peace or security. +My hand wandered to the velvet cheek of the girl I had claimed +as mine, and to her luxuriant hair and the golden fillet which +bound it close to her shapely head. Her slender fingers +groping upward sought mine and drew them to her lips, and then +I gathered her in my arms and crushed her to me, smothering +her mouth with a long, long kiss. It was the first time that +passion had tinged my intercourse with Ajor. We were alone, +and the hut was ours until morning. + +But now from beyond the palisade in the direction of the main +gate came the hallooing of men and the answering calls and +queries of the guard. We listened. Returning hunters, no doubt. +We heard them enter the village amidst the barking dogs. I have +forgotten to mention the dogs of Kro-lu. The village swarmed +with them, gaunt, wolflike creatures that guarded the herd by +day when it grazed without the palisade, ten dogs to a cow. +By night the cows were herded in an outer inclosure roofed +against the onslaughts of the carnivorous cats; and the dogs, +with the exception of a few, were brought into the village; +these few well-tested brutes remained with the herd. During the +day they fed plentifully upon the beasts of prey which they +killed in protection of the herd, so that their keep amounted +to nothing at all. + +Shortly after the commotion at the gate had subsided, Ajor and +I arose to enter the hut, and at the same time a warrior +appeared from one of the twisted alleys which, lying between +the irregularly placed huts and groups of huts, form the +streets of the Kro-lu village. The fellow halted before us and +addressed me, saying that Al-tan desired my presence at his hut. +The wording of the invitation and the manner of the messenger +threw me entirely off my guard, so cordial was the one and +respectful the other, and the result was that I went willingly, +telling Ajor that I would return presently. I had laid my arms +and ammunition aside as soon as we had taken over the hut, and +I left them with Ajor now, as I had noticed that aside from +their hunting-knives the men of Kro-lu bore no weapons about +the village streets. There was an atmosphere of peace and +security within that village that I had not hoped to experience +within Caspak, and after what I had passed through, it must have +cast a numbing spell over my faculties of judgment and reason. +I had eaten of the lotus-flower of safety; dangers no longer +threatened for they had ceased to be. + +The messenger led me through the labyrinthine alleys to an open +plaza near the center of the village. At one end of this plaza +was a long hut, much the largest that I had yet seen, before +the door of which were many warriors. I could see that the +interior was lighted and that a great number of men were +gathered within. The dogs about the plaza were as thick as +fleas, and those I approached closely evinced a strong desire +to devour me, their noses evidently apprising them of the fact +that I was of an alien race, since they paid no attention +whatever to my companion. Once inside the council-hut, for +such it appeared to be, I found a large concourse of warriors +seated, or rather squatted, around the floor. At one end of +the oval space which the warriors left down the center of the +room stood Al-tan and another warrior whom I immediately +recognized as a Galu, and then I saw that there were many +Galus present. About the walls were a number of flaming +torches stuck in holes in a clay plaster which evidently +served the purpose of preventing the inflammable wood and +grasses of which the hut was composed from being ignited by +the flames. Lying about among the warriors or wandering +restlessly to and fro were a number of savage dogs. + +The warriors eyed me curiously as I entered, especially the +Galus, and then I was conducted into the center of the group +and led forward toward Al-tan. As I advanced I felt one of the +dogs sniffing at my heels, and of a sudden a great brute leaped +upon my back. As I turned to thrust it aside before its fangs +found a hold upon me, I beheld a huge Airedale leaping +frantically about me. The grinning jaws, the half-closed eyes, +the back-laid ears spoke to me louder than might the words of +man that here was no savage enemy but a joyous friend, and then +I recognized him, and fell to one knee and put my arms about +his neck while he whined and cried with joy. It was Nobs, dear +old Nobs. Bowen Tyler's Nobs, who had loved me next to his master. + +"Where is the master of this dog?" I asked, turning toward Al-tan. + +The chieftain inclined his head toward the Galu standing at +his side. "He belongs to Du-seen the Galu," he replied. + +"He belongs to Bowen J. Tyler, Jr., of Santa Monica," I +retorted, "and I want to know where his master is." + +The Galu shrugged. "The dog is mine," he said. "He came to me +cor-sva-jo, and he is unlike any dog in Caspak, being kind +and docile and yet a killer when aroused. I would not part +with him. I do not know the man of whom you speak." + +So this was Du-seen! This was the man from whom Ajor had fled. +I wondered if he knew that she was here. I wondered if they +had sent for me because of her; but after they had commenced to +question me, my mind was relieved; they did not mention Ajor. +Their interest seemed centered upon the strange world from +which I had come, my journey to Caspak and my intentions now +that I had arrived. I answered them frankly as I had nothing +to conceal and assured them that my only wish was to find my +friends and return to my own country. In the Galu Du-seen and +his warriors I saw something of the explanation of the term +"golden race" which is applied to them, for their ornaments and +weapons were either wholly of beaten gold or heavily decorated +with the precious metal. They were a very imposing set of +men--tall and straight and handsome. About their heads were +bands of gold like that which Ajor wore, and from their left +shoulders depended the leopard-tails of the Galus. In addition +to the deer-skin tunic which constituted the major portion of +their apparel, each carried a light blanket of barbaric yet +beautiful design--the first evidence of weaving I had seen +in Caspak. Ajor had had no blanket, having lost it during her +flight from the attentions of Du-seen; nor was she so heavily +incrusted with gold as these male members of her tribe. + +The audience must have lasted fully an hour when Al-tan +signified that I might return to my hut. All the time Nobs had +lain quietly at my feet; but the instant that I turned to +leave, he was up and after me. Duseen called to him; but +the terrier never even so much as looked in his direction. +I had almost reached the doorway leading from the council-hall +when Al-tan rose and called after me. "Stop!" he shouted. +"Stop, stranger! The beast of Du-seen the Galu follows you." + +"The dog is not Du-seen's," I replied. "He belongs to my +friend, as I told you, and he prefers to stay with me until his +master is found." And I turned again to resume my way. I had +taken but a few steps when I heard a commotion behind me, and +at the same moment a man leaned close and whispered "Kazar!" +close to my ear--kazar, the Caspakian equivalent of beware. +It was To-mar. As he spoke, he turned quickly away as though +loath to have others see that he knew me, and at the same +instant I wheeled to discover Du-seen striding rapidly after me. +Al-tan followed him, and it was evident that both were angry. + +Du-seen, a weapon half drawn, approached truculently. +"The beast is mine," he reiterated. "Would you steal him?" + +"He is not yours nor mine," I replied, "and I am not stealing him. +If he wishes to follow you, he may; I will not interfere; but if +he wishes to follow me, he shall; nor shall you prevent." +I turned to Al-tan. "Is not that fair?" I demanded. "Let the dog +choose his master." + +Du-seen, without waiting for Al-tan's reply, reached for Nobs +and grasped him by the scruff of the neck. I did not interfere, +for I guessed what would happen; and it did. With a savage growl +Nobs turned like lightning upon the Galu, wrenched loose from +his hold and leaped for his throat. The man stepped back and +warded off the first attack with a heavy blow of his fist, +immediately drawing his knife with which to meet the +Airedale's return. And Nobs would have returned, all right, +had not I spoken to him. In a low voice I called him to heel. +For just an instant he hesitated, standing there trembling and +with bared fangs, glaring at his foe; but he was well trained +and had been out with me quite as much as he had with Bowen--in +fact, I had had most to do with his early training; then he +walked slowly and very stiff-legged to his place behind me. + +Du-seen, red with rage, would have had it out with the two of +us had not Al-tan drawn him to one side and whispered in his +ear--upon which, with a grunt, the Galu walked straight back to +the opposite end of the hall, while Nobs and I continued upon +our way toward the hut and Ajor. As we passed out into the +village plaza, I saw Chal-az--we were so close to one another +that I could have reached out and touched him--and our eyes +met; but though I greeted him pleasantly and paused to speak to +him, he brushed past me without a sign of recognition. I was +puzzled at his behavior, and then I recalled that To-mar, +though he had warned me, had appeared not to wish to seem +friendly with me. I could not understand their attitude, +and was trying to puzzle out some sort of explanation, when +the matter was suddenly driven from my mind by the report of +a firearm. Instantly I broke into a run, my brain in a whirl of +forebodings, for the only firearms in the Kro-lu country were +those I had left in the hut with Ajor. + +That she was in danger I could not but fear, as she was now +something of an adept in the handling of both the pistol and +rifle, a fact which largely eliminated the chance that the shot +had come from an accidentally discharged firearm. When I left +the hut, I had felt that she and I were safe among friends; no +thought of danger was in my mind; but since my audience with +Al-tan, the presence and bearing of Duseen and the strange +attitude of both To-mar and Chal-az had each contributed toward +arousing my suspicions, and now I ran along the narrow, winding +alleys of the Kro-lu village with my heart fairly in my mouth. + +I am endowed with an excellent sense of direction, which has +been greatly perfected by the years I have spent in the +mountains and upon the plains and deserts of my native state, +so that it was with little or no difficulty that I found my way +back to the hut in which I had left Ajor. As I entered the +doorway, I called her name aloud. There was no response. +I drew a box of matches from my pocket and struck a light and +as the flame flared up, a half-dozen brawny warriors leaped upon +me from as many directions; but even in the brief instant that +the flare lasted, I saw that Ajor was not within the hut, and +that my arms and ammunition had been removed. + +As the six men leaped upon me, an angry growl burst from +behind them. I had forgotten Nobs. Like a demon of hate he +sprang among those Kro-lu fighting-men, tearing, rending, ripping +with his long tusks and his mighty jaws. They had me down in an +instant, and it goes without saying that the six of them could +have kept me there had it not been for Nobs; but while I was +struggling to throw them off, Nobs was springing first upon one +and then upon another of them until they were so put to it to +preserve their hides and their lives from him that they could +give me only a small part of their attention. One of them was +assiduously attempting to strike me on the head with his stone +hatchet; but I caught his arm and at the same time turned over +upon my belly, after which it took but an instant to get my +feet under me and rise suddenly. + +As I did so, I kept a grip upon the man's arm, carrying it over +one shoulder. Then I leaned suddenly forward and hurled my +antagonist over my head to a hasty fall at the opposite side of +the hut. In the dim light of the interior I saw that Nobs had +already accounted for one of the others--one who lay very quiet +upon the floor--while the four remaining upon their feet were +striking at him with knives and hatchets. + +Running to one side of the man I had just put out of the +fighting, I seized his hatchet and knife, and in another moment +was in the thick of the argument. I was no match for these +savage warriors with their own weapons and would soon have gone +down to ignominious defeat and death had it not been for Nobs, +who alone was a match for the four of them. I never saw any +creature so quick upon its feet as was that great Airedale, nor +such frightful ferocity as he manifested in his attacks. It was +as much the latter as the former which contributed to the +undoing of our enemies, who, accustomed though they were to +the ferocity of terrible creatures, seemed awed by the sight of +this strange beast from another world battling at the side of +his equally strange master. Yet they were no cowards, and only +by teamwork did Nobs and I overcome them at last. We would +rush for a man, simultaneously, and as Nobs leaped for him upon +one side, I would strike at his head with the stone hatchet +from the other. + +As the last man went down, I heard the running of many feet +approaching us from the direction of the plaza. To be captured +now would mean death; yet I could not attempt to leave the +village without first ascertaining the whereabouts of Ajor and +releasing her if she were held a captive. That I could escape +the village I was not at all sure; but of one thing I was +positive; that it would do neither Ajor nor myself any service +to remain where I was and be captured; so with Nobs, bloody but +happy, following at heel, I turned down the first alley and +slunk away in the direction of the northern end of the village. + +Friendless and alone, hunted through the dark labyrinths of +this savage community, I seldom have felt more helpless than +at that moment; yet far transcending any fear which I may +have felt for my own safety was my concern for that of Ajor. +What fate had befallen her? Where was she, and in whose power? +That I should live to learn the answers to these queries I doubted; +but that I should face death gladly in the attempt--of that I +was certain. And why? With all my concern for the welfare of +my friends who had accompanied me to Caprona, and of my best +friend of all, Bowen J. Tyler, Jr., I never yet had experienced +the almost paralyzing fear for the safety of any other creature +which now threw me alternately into a fever of despair and into +a cold sweat of apprehension as my mind dwelt upon the fate on +one bit of half-savage femininity of whose very existence even +I had not dreamed a few short weeks before. + +What was this hold she had upon me? Was I bewitched, that my +mind refused to function sanely, and that judgment and reason +were dethroned by some mad sentiment which I steadfastly +refused to believe was love? I had never been in love. I was +not in love now--the very thought was preposterous. How could +I, Thomas Billings, the right-hand man of the late Bowen J. +Tyler, Sr., one of America's foremost captains of industry and +the greatest man in California, be in love with a--a--the word +stuck in my throat; yet by my own American standards Ajor could +be nothing else; at home, for all her beauty, for all her +delicately tinted skin, little Ajor by her apparel, by the +habits and customs and manners of her people, by her life, +would have been classed a squaw. Tom Billings in love with +a squaw! I shuddered at the thought. + +And then there came to my mind, in a sudden, brilliant flash +upon the screen of recollection the picture of Ajor as I had +last seen her, and I lived again the delicious moment in which +we had clung to one another, lips smothering lips, as I left +her to go to the council hall of Al-tan; and I could have +kicked myself for the snob and the cad that my thoughts had +proven me--me, who had always prided myself that I was neither +the one nor the other! + +These things ran through my mind as Nobs and I made our way +through the dark village, the voices and footsteps of those who +sought us still in our ears. These and many other things, nor +could I escape the incontrovertible fact that the little figure +round which my recollections and my hopes entwined themselves +was that of Ajor--beloved barbarian! My reveries were broken in +upon by a hoarse whisper from the black interior of a hut past +which we were making our way. My name was called in a low +voice, and a man stepped out beside me as I halted with +raised knife. It was Chal-az. + +"Quick!" he warned. "In here! It is my hut, and they will not +search it." + +I hesitated, recalled his attitude of a few minutes before; and +as though he had read my thoughts, he said quickly: "I could +not speak to you in the plaza without danger of arousing +suspicions which would prevent me aiding you later, for word +had gone out that Al-tan had turned against you and would +destroy you--this was after Du-seen the Galu arrived." + +I followed him into the hut, and with Nobs at our heels we +passed through several chambers into a remote and windowless +apartment where a small lamp sputtered in its unequal battle +with the inky darkness. A hole in the roof permitted the smoke +from burning oil egress; yet the atmosphere was far from lucid. +Here Chal-az motioned me to a seat upon a furry hide spread +upon the earthen floor. + +"I am your friend," he said. "You saved my life; and I am no +ingrate as is the batu Al-tan. I will serve you, and there +are others here who will serve you against Al-tan and this +renegade Galu, Du-seen." + +"But where is Ajor?" I asked, for I cared little for my own +safety while she was in danger. + +"Ajor is safe, too," he answered. "We learned the designs of +Al-tan and Du-seen. The latter, learning that Ajor was here, +demanded her; and Al-tan promised that he should have her; +but when the warriors went to get her To-mar went with them. +Ajor tried to defend herself. She killed one of the warriors, +and then To-mar picked her up in his arms when the others had +taken her weapons from her. He told the others to look after the +wounded man, who was really already dead, and to seize you upon +your return, and that he, To-mar, would bear Ajor to Al-tan; +but instead of bearing her to Al-tan, he took her to his own +hut, where she now is with So-al, To-mar's she. It all +happened very quickly. To-mar and I were in the council-hut +when Du-seen attempted to take the dog from you. I was seeking +To-mar for this work. He ran out immediately and accompanied +the warriors to your hut while I remained to watch what went +on within the council-hut and to aid you if you needed aid. +What has happened since you know." + +I thanked him for his loyalty and then asked him to take me to +Ajor; but he said that it could not be done, as the village +streets were filled with searchers. In fact, we could hear +them passing to and fro among the huts, making inquiries, and +at last Chal-az thought it best to go to the doorway of his +dwelling, which consisted of many huts joined together, lest +they enter and search. + +Chal-az was absent for a long time--several hours which seemed +an eternity to me. All sounds of pursuit had long since +ceased, and I was becoming uneasy because of his protracted +absence when I heard him returning through the other apartments +of his dwelling. He was perturbed when he entered that in which +I awaited him, and I saw a worried expression upon his face. + +"What is wrong?" I asked. "Have they found Ajor?" + +"No," he replied; "but Ajor has gone. She learned that you +had escaped them and was told that you had left the village, +believing that she had escaped too. So-al could not detain her. +She made her way out over the top of the palisade, armed with +only her knife." + +"Then I must go," I said, rising. Nobs rose and shook himself. +He had been dead asleep when I spoke. + +"Yes," agreed Chal-az, "you must go at once. It is almost dawn. +Du-seen leaves at daylight to search for her." He leaned +close to my ear and whispered: "There are many to follow and +help you. Al-tan has agreed to aid Du-seen against the Galus +of Jor; but there are many of us who have combined to rise +against Al-tan and prevent this ruthless desecration of the +laws and customs of the Kro-lu and of Caspak. We will rise as +Luata has ordained that we shall rise, and only thus. No batu +may win to the estate of a Galu by treachery and force of arms +while Chal-az lives and may wield a heavy blow and a sharp spear +with true Kro-lus at his back!" + +"I hope that I may live to aid you," I replied. "If I had my +weapons and my ammunition, I could do much. Do you know where +they are?" + +"No," he said, "they have disappeared." And then: "Wait! +You cannot go forth half armed, and garbed as you are. You are +going into the Galu country, and you must go as a Galu. Come!" +And without waiting for a reply, he led me into another +apartment, or to be more explicit, another of the several huts +which formed his cellular dwelling. + +Here was a pile of skins, weapons, and ornaments. "Remove your +strange apparel," said Chal-az, "and I will fit you out as a +true Galu. I have slain several of them in the raids of my +early days as a Kro-lu, and here are their trappings." + +I saw the wisdom of his suggestion, and as my clothes were by +now so ragged as to but half conceal my nakedness, I had no +regrets in laying them aside. Stripped to the skin, I donned +the red-deerskin tunic, the leopard-tail, the golden fillet, +armlets and leg-ornaments of a Galu, with the belt, scabbard +and knife, the shield, spear, bow and arrow and the long rope +which I learned now for the first time is the distinctive +weapon of the Galu warrior. It is a rawhide rope, not +dissimilar to those of the Western plains and cow-camps of +my youth. The honda is a golden oval and accurate weight for +the throwing of the noose. This heavy honda, Chal-az +explained, is used as a weapon, being thrown with great force +and accuracy at an enemy and then coiled in for another cast. +In hunting and in battle, they use both the noose and the honda. +If several warriors surround a single foeman or quarry, they rope +it with the noose from several sides; but a single warrior +against a lone antagonist will attempt to brain his foe with +the metal oval. + +I could not have been more pleased with any weapon, short of a +rifle, which he could have found for me, since I have been +adept with the rope from early childhood; but I must confess +that I was less favorably inclined toward my apparel. In so +far as the sensation was concerned, I might as well have been +entirely naked, so short and light was the tunic. When I asked +Chal-az for the Caspakian name for rope, he told me ga, and +for the first time I understood the derivation of the word +Galu, which means ropeman. + +Entirely outfitted I would not have known myself, so strange +was my garb and my armament. Upon my back were slung my bow, +arrows, shield, and short spear; from the center of my girdle +depended my knife; at my right hip was my stone hatchet; and at +my left hung the coils of my long rope. By reaching my right +hand over my left shoulder, I could seize the spear or arrows; +my left hand could find my bow over my right shoulder, while a +veritable contortionist-act was necessary to place my shield in +front of me and upon my left arm. The shield, long and oval, +is utilized more as back-armor than as a defense against +frontal attack, for the close-set armlets of gold upon the left +forearm are principally depended upon to ward off knife, spear, +hatchet, or arrow from in front; but against the greater +carnivora and the attacks of several human antagonists, the +shield is utilized to its best advantage and carried by loops +upon the left arm. + +Fully equipped, except for a blanket, I followed Chal-az from +his domicile into the dark and deserted alleys of Kro-lu. +Silently we crept along, Nobs silent at heel, toward the +nearest portion of the palisade. Here Chal-az bade me +farewell, telling me that he hoped to see me soon among the +Galus, as he felt that "the call soon would come" to him. +I thanked him for his loyal assistance and promised that whether +I reached the Galu country or not, I should always stand ready +to repay his kindness to me, and that he could count on me in +the revolution against Al-tan. + + + +Chapter 7 + +To run up the inclined surface of the palisade and drop to the +ground outside was the work of but a moment, or would have been +but for Nobs. I had to put my rope about him after we reached +the top, lift him over the sharpened stakes and lower him upon +the outside. To find Ajor in the unknown country to the north +seemed rather hopeless; yet I could do no less than try, +praying in the meanwhile that she would come through unscathed +and in safety to her father. + +As Nobs and I swung along in the growing light of the coming +day, I was impressed by the lessening numbers of savage beasts +the farther north I traveled. With the decrease among the +carnivora, the herbivora increased in quantity, though anywhere +in Caspak they are sufficiently plentiful to furnish ample food +for the meateaters of each locality. The wild cattle, +antelope, deer, and horses I passed showed changes in evolution +from their cousins farther south. The kine were smaller and +less shaggy, the horses larger. North of the Kro-lu village I +saw a small band of the latter of about the size of those of +our old Western plains--such as the Indians bred in former days +and to a lesser extent even now. They were fat and sleek, and +I looked upon them with covetous eyes and with thoughts that +any old cow-puncher may well imagine I might entertain after +having hoofed it for weeks; but they were wary, scarce +permitting me to approach within bow-and-arrow range, much less +within roping-distance; yet I still had hopes which I never discarded. + +Twice before noon we were stalked and charged by man-eaters; +but even though I was without firearms, I still had ample +protection in Nobs, who evidently had learned something of +Caspakian hunt rules under the tutelage of Du-seen or some +other Galu, and of course a great deal more by experience. +He always was on the alert for dangerous foes, invariably warning +me by low growls of the approach of a large carnivorous animal +long before I could either see or hear it, and then when the +thing appeared, he would run snapping at its heels, drawing the +charge away from me until I found safety in some tree; yet +never did the wily Nobs take an unnecessary chance of a mauling. +He would dart in and away so quickly that not even the +lightning-like movements of the great cats could reach him. +I have seen him tantalize them thus until they fairly screamed +in rage. + +The greatest inconvenience the hunters caused me was the delay, +for they have a nasty habit of keeping one treed for an hour or +more if balked in their designs; but at last we came in sight +of a line of cliffs running east and west across our path as +far as the eye could see in either direction, and I knew that +we reached the natural boundary which marks the line between +the Kro-lu and Galu countries. The southern face of these +cliffs loomed high and forbidding, rising to an altitude of +some two hundred feet, sheer and precipitous, without a break +that the eye could perceive. How I was to find a crossing I +could not guess. Whether to search to the east toward the +still loftier barrier-cliffs fronting upon the ocean, or +westward in the direction of the inland sea was a question +which baffled me. Were there many passes or only one? I had +no way of knowing. I could but trust to chance. It never +occurred to me that Nobs had made the crossing at least once, +possibly a greater number of times, and that he might lead me +to the pass; and so it was with no idea of assistance that I +appealed to him as a man alone with a dumb brute so often does. + +"Nobs," I said, "how the devil are we going to cross those cliffs?" + +I do not say that he understood me, even though I realize that +an Airedale is a mighty intelligent dog; but I do swear that he +seemed to understand me, for he wheeled about, barking joyously +and trotted off toward the west; and when I didn't follow him, +he ran back to me barking furiously, and at last taking hold of +the calf of my leg in an effort to pull me along in the +direction he wished me to go. Now, as my legs were naked and +Nobs' jaws are much more powerful than he realizes, I gave in +and followed him, for I knew that I might as well go west as +east, as far as any knowledge I had of the correct direction went. + +We followed the base of the cliffs for a considerable distance. +The ground was rolling and tree-dotted and covered with grazing +animals, alone, in pairs and in herds--a motley aggregation of +the modern and extinct herbivore of the world. A huge woolly +mastodon stood swaying to and fro in the shade of a giant +fern--a mighty bull with enormous upcurving tusks. Near him +grazed an aurochs bull with a cow and a calf, close beside a +lone rhinoceros asleep in a dust-hole. Deer, antelope, bison, +horses, sheep, and goats were all in sight at the same time, +and at a little distance a great megatherium reared up on its +huge tail and massive hind feet to tear the leaves from a +tall tree. The forgotten past rubbed flanks with the present-- +while Tom Billings, modern of the moderns, passed in the garb of +pre-Glacial man, and before him trotted a creature of a breed +scarce sixty years old. Nobs was a parvenu; but it failed to +worry him. + +As we neared the inland sea we saw more flying reptiles and +several great amphibians, but none of them attacked us. As we +were topping a rise in the middle of the afternoon, I saw +something that brought me to a sudden stop. Calling Nobs in a +whisper, I cautioned him to silence and kept him at heel while +I threw myself flat and watched, from behind a sheltering +shrub, a body of warriors approaching the cliff from the south. +I could see that they were Galus, and I guessed that Du-seen +led them. They had taken a shorter route to the pass and so +had overhauled me. I could see them plainly, for they were no +great distance away, and saw with relief that Ajor was not with them. + +The cliffs before them were broken and ragged, those coming +from the east overlapping the cliffs from the west. Into the +defile formed by this overlapping the party filed. I could see +them climbing upward for a few minutes, and then they +disappeared from view. When the last of them had passed from +sight, I rose and bent my steps in the direction of the +pass--the same pass toward which Nobs had evidently been +leading me. I went warily as I approached it, for fear the +party might have halted to rest. If they hadn't halted, I had +no fear of being discovered, for I had seen that the Galus +marched without point, flankers or rear guard; and when I +reached the pass and saw a narrow, one-man trail leading upward +at a stiff angle, I wished that I were chief of the Galus for a +few weeks. A dozen men could hold off forever in that narrow +pass all the hordes which might be brought up from the south; +yet there it lay entirely unguarded. + +The Galus might be a great people in Caspak; but they were +pitifully inefficient in even the simpler forms of military tactics. +I was surprised that even a man of the Stone Age should be so +lacking in military perspicacity. Du-seen dropped far below +par in my estimation as I saw the slovenly formation of his +troop as it passed through an enemy country and entered the +domain of the chief against whom he had risen in revolt; but +Du-seen must have known Jor the chief and known that Jor would +not be waiting for him at the pass. Nevertheless he took +unwarranted chances. With one squad of a home-guard company I +could have conquered Caspak. + +Nobs and I followed to the summit of the pass, and there we saw +the party defiling into the Galu country, the level of which +was not, on an average, over fifty feet below the summit of the +cliffs and about a hundred and fifty feet above the adjacent +Kro-lu domain. Immediately the landscape changed. The trees, +the flowers and the shrubs were of a hardier type, and I +realized that at night the Galu blanket might be almost +a necessity. Acacia and eucalyptus predominated among the trees; +yet there were ash and oak and even pine and fir and hemlock. +The tree-life was riotous. The forests were dense and peopled +by enormous trees. From the summit of the cliff I could see +forests rising hundreds of feet above the level upon which I +stood, and even at the distance they were from me I realized +that the boles were of gigantic size. + +At last I had come to the Galu country. Though not conceived +in Caspak, I had indeed come up cor-sva jo--from the +beginning I had come up through the hideous horrors of the +lower Caspakian spheres of evolution, and I could not but feel +something of the elation and pride which had filled To-mar and +So-al when they realized that the call had come to them and +they were about to rise from the estate of Band-lus to that of +Kro-lus. I was glad that I was not batu. + +But where was Ajor? Though my eyes searched the wide landscape +before me, I saw nothing other than the warriors of Du-seen and +the beasts of the fields and the forests. Surrounded by +forests, I could see wide plains dotting the country as far as +the eye could reach; but nowhere was a sign of a small Galu +she--the beloved she whom I would have given my right hand to see. + +Nobs and I were hungry; we had not eaten since the preceding +night, and below us was game-deer, sheep, anything that a +hungry hunter might crave; so down the steep trail we made our +way, and then upon my belly with Nobs crouching low behind me, +I crawled toward a small herd of red deer feeding at the edge +of a plain close beside a forest. There was ample cover, what +with solitary trees and dotting bushes so that I found no +difficulty in stalking up wind to within fifty feet of my +quarry--a large, sleek doe unaccompanied by a fawn. Greatly then +did I regret my rifle. Never in my life had I shot an arrow, +but I knew how it was done, and fitting the shaft to my string, +I aimed carefully and let drive. At the same instant I called +to Nobs and leaped to me feet. + +The arrow caught the doe full in the side, and in the same +moment Nobs was after her. She turned to flee with the two of +us pursuing her, Nobs with his great fangs bared and I with my +short spear poised for a cast. The balance of the herd sprang +quickly away; but the hurt doe lagged, and in a moment Nobs was +beside her and had leaped at her throat. He had her down when +I came up, and I finished her with my spear. It didn't take me +long to have a fire going and a steak broiling, and while I +was preparing for my own feast, Nobs was filling himself with +raw venison. Never have I enjoyed a meal so heartily. + +For two days I searched fruitlessly back and forth from the +inland sea almost to the barrier cliffs for some trace of Ajor, +and always I trended northward; but I saw no sign of any human +being, not even the band of Galu warriors under Du-seen; and +then I commenced to have misgivings. Had Chal-az spoken the +truth to me when he said that Ajor had quit the village of +the Kro-lu? Might he not have been acting upon the orders of +Al-tan, in whose savage bosom might have lurked some small +spark of shame that he had attempted to do to death one who had +befriended a Kro-lu warrior--a guest who had brought no harm +upon the Kro-lu race--and thus have sent me out upon a +fruitless mission in the hope that the wild beasts would do +what Al-tan hesitated to do? I did not know; but the more I +thought upon it, the more convinced I became that Ajor had +not quitted the Kro-lu village; but if not, what had brought +Du-seen forth without her? There was a puzzler, and once again +I was all at sea. + +On the second day of my experience of the Galu country I came +upon a bunch of as magnificent horses as it has ever been my +lot to see. They were dark bays with blazed faces and perfect +surcingles of white about their barrels. Their forelegs were +white to the knees. In height they stood almost sixteen hands, +the mares being a trifle smaller than the stallions, of which +there were three or four in this band of a hundred, which +comprised many colts and half-grown horses. Their markings +were almost identical, indicating a purity of strain that might +have persisted since long ages ago. If I had coveted one of +the little ponies of the Kro-lu country, imagine my state of +mind when I came upon these magnificent creatures! No sooner +had I espied them than I determined to possess one of them; nor +did it take me long to select a beautiful young stallion--a +four-year-old, I guessed him. + +The horses were grazing close to the edge of the forest in +which Nobs and I were concealed, while the ground between us +and them was dotted with clumps of flowering brush which +offered perfect concealment. The stallion of my choice grazed +with a filly and two yearlings a little apart from the balance +of the herd and nearest to the forest and to me. At my +whispered "Charge!" Nobs flattened himself to the ground, and I +knew that he would not again move until I called him, unless +danger threatened me from the rear. Carefully I crept forward +toward my unsuspecting quarry, coming undetected to the +concealment of a bush not more than twenty feet from him. +Here I quietly arranged my noose, spreading it flat and open +upon the ground. + +To step to one side of the bush and throw directly from the +ground, which is the style I am best in, would take but an +instant, and in that instant the stallion would doubtless be +under way at top speed in the opposite direction. Then he +would have to wheel about when I surprised him, and in doing +so, he would most certainly rise slightly upon his hind feet +and throw up his head, presenting a perfect target for my noose +as he pivoted. + +Yes, I had it beautifully worked out, and I waited until he +should turn in my direction. At last it became evident that he +was doing so, when apparently without cause, the filly raised +her head, neighed and started off at a trot in the opposite +direction, immediately followed, of course, by the colts and +my stallion. It looked for a moment as though my last hope was +blasted; but presently their fright, if fright it was, passed, +and they resumed grazing again a hundred yards farther on. +This time there was no bush within fifty feet of them, and I +was at a loss as to how to get within safe roping-distance. +Anywhere under forty feet I am an excellent roper, at fifty +feet I am fair; but over that I knew it would be a matter of +luck if I succeeded in getting my noose about that beautiful +arched neck. + +As I stood debating the question in my mind, I was almost upon +the point of making the attempt at the long throw. I had +plenty of rope, this Galu weapon being fully sixty feet long. +How I wished for the collies from the ranch! At a word they +would have circled this little bunch and driven it straight +down to me; and then it flashed into my mind that Nobs had run +with those collies all one summer, that he had gone down to the +pasture with them after the cows every evening and done his +part in driving them back to the milking-barn, and had done it +intelligently; but Nobs had never done the thing alone, and it +had been a year since he had done it at all. However, the +chances were more in favor of my foozling the long throw than +that Nobs would fall down in his part if I gave him the chance. + +Having come to a decision, I had to creep back to Nobs and get +him, and then with him at my heels return to a large bush near +the four horses. Here we could see directly through the bush, and +pointing the animals out to Nobs I whispered: "Fetch 'em, boy!" + +In an instant he was gone, circling wide toward the rear of +the quarry. They caught sight of him almost immediately and +broke into a trot away from him; but when they saw that he was +apparently giving them a wide berth they stopped again, +though they stood watching him, with high-held heads and +quivering nostrils. It was a beautiful sight. And then Nobs +turned in behind them and trotted slowly back toward me. He did +not bark, nor come rushing down upon them, and when he had come +closer to them, he proceeded at a walk. The splendid creatures +seemed more curious than fearful, making no effort to escape +until Nobs was quite close to them; then they trotted slowly +away, but at right angles. + +And now the fun and trouble commenced. Nobs, of course, +attempted to turn them, and he seemed to have selected the +stallion to work upon, for he paid no attention to the others, +having intelligence enough to know that a lone dog could run +his legs off before he could round up four horses that didn't +wish to be rounded up. The stallion, however, had notions of +his own about being headed, and the result was as pretty a race +as one would care to see. Gad, how that horse could run! He seemed +to flatten out and shoot through the air with the very minimum +of exertion, and at his forefoot ran Nobs, doing his best to +turn him. He was barking now, and twice he leaped high against +the stallion's flank; but this cost too much effort and always +lost him ground, as each time he was hurled heels over head by +the impact; yet before they disappeared over a rise in the ground +I was sure that Nob's persistence was bearing fruit; it seemed +to me that the horse was giving way a trifle to the right. +Nobs was between him and the main herd, to which the yearling +and filly had already fled. + +As I stood waiting for Nobs' return, I could not but speculate +upon my chances should I be attacked by some formidable beast. +I was some distance from the forest and armed with weapons in +the use of which I was quite untrained, though I had practiced +some with the spear since leaving the Kro-lu country. I must +admit that my thoughts were not pleasant ones, verging almost +upon cowardice, until I chanced to think of little Ajor alone +in this same land and armed only with a knife! I was +immediately filled with shame; but in thinking the matter over +since, I have come to the conclusion that my state of mind was +influenced largely by my approximate nakedness. If you have +never wandered about in broad daylight garbed in a bit of +red-deer skin in inadequate length, you can have no conception +of the sensation of futility that overwhelms one. Clothes, to +a man accustomed to wearing clothes, impart a certain +self-confidence; lack of them induces panic. + +But no beast attacked me, though I saw several menacing forms +passing through the dark aisles of the forest. At last I +commenced to worry over Nobs' protracted absence and to fear +that something had befallen him. I was coiling my rope to +start out in search of him, when I saw the stallion leap into +view at almost the same spot behind which he had disappeared, +and at his heels ran Nobs. Neither was running so fast or +furiously as when last I had seen them. + +The horse, as he approached me, I could see was laboring hard; +yet he kept gamely to his task, and Nobs, too. The splendid +fellow was driving the quarry straight toward me. I crouched +behind my bush and laid my noose in readiness to throw. As the +two approached my hiding-place, Nobs reduced his speed, and the +stallion, evidently only too glad of the respite, dropped into +a trot. It was at this gait that he passed me; my rope-hand +flew forward; the honda, well down, held the noose open, +and the beautiful bay fairly ran his head into it. + +Instantly he wheeled to dash off at right angles. I braced +myself with the rope around my hip and brought him to a +sudden stand. Rearing and struggling, he fought for his liberty +while Nobs, panting and with lolling tongue, came and threw +himself down near me. He seemed to know that his work was done +and that he had earned his rest. The stallion was pretty well +spent, and after a few minutes of struggling he stood with feet +far spread, nostrils dilated and eyes wide, watching me as I +edged toward him, taking in the slack of the rope as I advanced. +A dozen times he reared and tried to break away; but always I +spoke soothingly to him and after an hour of effort I succeeded +in reaching his head and stroking his muzzle. Then I gathered +a handful of grass and offered it to him, and always I talked +to him in a quiet and reassuring voice. + +I had expected a battle royal; but on the contrary I found his +taming a matter of comparative ease. Though wild, he was +gentle to a degree, and of such remarkable intelligence that +he soon discovered that I had no intention of harming him. +After that, all was easy. Before that day was done, I had taught +him to lead and to stand while I stroked his head and flanks, and +to eat from my hand, and had the satisfaction of seeing the light +of fear die in his large, intelligent eyes. + +The following day I fashioned a hackamore from a piece which I +cut from the end of my long Galu rope, and then I mounted him +fully prepared for a struggle of titanic proportions in which I +was none too sure that he would not come off victor; but he +never made the slightest effort to unseat me, and from then on +his education was rapid. No horse ever learned more quickly +the meaning of the rein and the pressure of the knees. I think +he soon learned to love me, and I know that I loved him; while +he and Nobs were the best of pals. I called him Ace. I had a +friend who was once in the French flying-corps, and when Ace +let himself out, he certainly flew. + +I cannot explain to you, nor can you understand, unless you too +are a horseman, the exhilarating feeling of well-being which +pervaded me from the moment that I commenced riding Ace. I was +a new man, imbued with a sense of superiority that led me to +feel that I could go forth and conquer all Caspak single-handed. +Now, when I needed meat, I ran it down on Ace and roped it, and +when some great beast with which we could not cope threatened us, +we galloped away to safety; but for the most part the creatures +we met looked upon us in terror, for Ace and I in combination +presented a new and unusual beast beyond their experience and ken. + +For five days I rode back and forth across the southern end of +the Galu country without seeing a human being; yet all the time +I was working slowly toward the north, for I had determined to +comb the territory thoroughly in search of Ajor; but on the +fifth day as I emerged from a forest, I saw some distance ahead +of me a single small figure pursued by many others. Instantly I +recognized the quarry as Ajor. The entire party was fully a +mile away from me, and they were crossing my path at right angles. +Ajor a few hundred yards in advance of those who followed her. +One of her pursuers was far in advance of the others, and was +gaining upon her rapidly. With a word and a pressure of the +knees I sent Ace leaping out into the open, and with Nobs +running close alongside, we raced toward her. + +At first none of them saw us; but as we neared Ajor, the pack +behind the foremost pursuer discovered us and set up such a +howl as I never before have heard. They were all Galus, and I +soon recognized the foremost as Du-seen. He was almost upon +Ajor now, and with a sense of terror such as I had never before +experienced, I saw that he ran with his knife in his hand, and +that his intention was to slay rather than capture. I could +not understand it, but I could only urge Ace to greater speed, +and most nobly did the wondrous creature respond to my demands. +If ever a four-footed creature approximated flying, it was Ace +that day. + +Du-seen, intent upon his brutal design, had as yet not noticed us. +He was within a pace of Ajor when Ace and I dashed between them, +and I, leaning down to the left, swept my little barbarian into +the hollow of an arm and up on the withers of my glorious Ace. +We had snatched her from the very clutches of Du-seen, who halted, +mystified and raging. Ajor, too, was mystified, as we had come +up from diagonally behind her so that she had no idea that we +were near until she was swung to Ace's back. The little savage +turned with drawn knife to stab me, thinking that I was some +new enemy, when her eyes found my face and she recognized me. +With a little sob she threw her arms about my neck, gasping: +"My Tom! My Tom!" + +And then Ace sank suddenly into thick mud to his belly, and +Ajor and I were thrown far over his head. He had run into one +of those numerous springs which cover Caspak. Sometimes they +are little lakes, again but tiny pools, and often mere +quagmires of mud, as was this one overgrown with lush grasses +which effectually hid its treacherous identity. It is a wonder +that Ace did not break a leg, so fast he was going when he +fell; but he didn't, though with four good legs he was unable +to wallow from the mire. Ajor and I had sprawled face down in +the covering grasses and so had not sunk deeply; but when we +tried to rise, we found that there was not footing, and +presently we saw that Du-seen and his followers were coming +down upon us. There was no escape. It was evident that we +were doomed. + +"Slay me!" begged Ajor. "Let me die at thy loved hands rather +than beneath the knife of this hateful thing, for he will kill me. +He has sworn to kill me. Last night he captured me, and when +later he would have his way with me, I struck him with my +fists and with my knife I stabbed him, and then I escaped, +leaving him raging in pain and thwarted desire. Today they +searched for me and found me; and as I fled, Du-seen ran after +me crying that he would slay me. Kill me, my Tom, and then fall +upon thine own spear, for they will kill you horribly if they +take you alive." + +I couldn't kill her--not at least until the last moment; and I +told her so, and that I loved her, and that until death came, I +would live and fight for her. + +Nobs had followed us into the bog and had done fairly well at +first, but when he neared us he too sank to his belly and could +only flounder about. We were in this predicament when Du-seen +and his followers approached the edge of the horrible swamp. +I saw that Al-tan was with him and many other Kro-lu warriors. +The alliance against Jor the chief had, therefore, been +consummated, and this horde was already marching upon the +Galu city. I sighed as I thought how close I had been to saving +not only Ajor but her father and his people from defeat and death. + +Beyond the swamp was a dense wood. Could we have reached this, +we would have been safe; but it might as well have been a +hundred miles away as a hundred yards across that hidden lake +of sticky mud. Upon the edge of the swamp Du-seen and his +horde halted to revile us. They could not reach us with their +hands; but at a command from Du-seen they fitted arrows to +their bows, and I saw that the end had come. Ajor huddled +close to me, and I took her in my arms. "I love you, Tom," she +said, "only you." Tears came to my eyes then, not tears of +self-pity for my predicament, but tears from a heart filled +with a great love--a heart that sees the sun of its life and +its love setting even as it rises. + +The renegade Galus and their Kro-lu allies stood waiting for +the word from Du-seen that would launch that barbed avalanche +of death upon us, when there broke from the wood beyond the +swamp the sweetest music that ever fell upon the ears of +man--the sharp staccato of at least two score rifles fired +rapidly at will. Down went the Galu and Kro-lu warriors like +tenpins before that deadly fusillade. + +What could it mean? To me it meant but one thing, and that was +that Hollis and Short and the others had scaled the cliffs and +made their way north to the Galu country upon the opposite side +of the island in time to save Ajor and me from almost certain death. +I didn't have to have an introduction to them to know that the +men who held those rifles were the men of my own party; and when, +a few minutes later, they came forth from their concealment, +my eyes verified my hopes. There they were, every man-jack of +them; and with them were a thousand straight, sleek warriors of +the Galu race; and ahead of the others came two men in the garb +of Galus. Each was tall and straight and wonderfully muscled; +yet they differed as Ace might differ from a perfect specimen +of another species. As they approached the mire, Ajor held forth +her arms and cried, "Jor, my chief! My father!" and the elder +of the two rushed in knee-deep to rescue her, and then the other +came close and looked into my face, and his eyes went wide, and +mine too, and I cried: "Bowen! For heaven's sake, Bowen Tyler!" + +It was he. My search was ended. Around me were all my company +and the man we had searched a new world to find. They cut +saplings from the forest and laid a road into the swamp before +they could get us all out, and then we marched back to the city +of Jor the Galu chief, and there was great rejoicing when Ajor +came home again mounted upon the glossy back of the stallion Ace. + +Tyler and Hollis and Short and all the rest of us Americans +nearly worked our jaws loose on the march back to the village, +and for days afterward we kept it up. They told me how they had +crossed the barrier cliffs in five days, working twenty-four +hours a day in three eight-hour shifts with two reliefs to each +shift alternating half-hourly. Two men with electric drills +driven from the dynamos aboard the Toreador drilled two +holes four feet apart in the face of the cliff and in the same +horizontal planes. The holes slanted slightly downward. Into these +holes the iron rods brought as a part of our equipment and for +just this purpose were inserted, extending about a foot beyond +the face of the rock, across these two rods a plank was laid, +and then the next shift, mounting to the new level, bored two +more holes five feet above the new platform, and so on. + +During the nights the searchlights from the Toreador were +kept playing upon the cliff at the point where the drills were +working, and at the rate of ten feet an hour the summit was +reached upon the fifth day. Ropes were lowered, blocks lashed +to trees at the top, and crude elevators rigged, so that by the +night of the fifth day the entire party, with the exception of +the few men needed to man the Toreador, were within Caspak +with an abundance of arms, ammunition and equipment. + +From then on, they fought their way north in search of me, +after a vain and perilous effort to enter the hideous +reptile-infested country to the south. Owing to the number of +guns among them, they had not lost a man; but their path was +strewn with the dead creatures they had been forced to slay to +win their way to the north end of the island, where they had +found Bowen and his bride among the Galus of Jor. + +The reunion between Bowen and Nobs was marked by a frantic +display upon Nobs' part, which almost stripped Bowen of the +scanty attire that the Galu custom had vouchsafed him. When we +arrived at the Galu city, Lys La Rue was waiting to welcome us. +She was Mrs. Tyler now, as the master of the Toreador had +married them the very day that the search-party had found them, +though neither Lys nor Bowen would admit that any civil or +religious ceremony could have rendered more sacred the bonds +with which God had united them. + +Neither Bowen nor the party from the Toreador had seen any +sign of Bradley and his party. They had been so long lost now +that any hopes for them must be definitely abandoned. The Galus +had heard rumors of them, as had the Western Kro-lu and Band-lu; +but none had seen aught of them since they had left Fort Dinosaur +months since. + +We rested in Jor's village for a fortnight while we prepared +for the southward journey to the point where the Toreador +was to lie off shore in wait for us. During these two weeks +Chal-az came up from the Krolu country, now a full-fledged Galu. +He told us that the remnants of Al-tan's party had been slain +when they attempted to re-enter Kro-lu. Chal-az had been made +chief, and when he rose, had left the tribe under a new leader +whom all respected. + +Nobs stuck close to Bowen; but Ace and Ajor and I went out upon +many long rides through the beautiful north Galu country. +Chal-az had brought my arms and ammunition up from Kro-lu with +him; but my clothes were gone; nor did I miss them once I +became accustomed to the free attire of the Galu. + +At last came the time for our departure; upon the following +morning we were to set out toward the south and the Toreador +and dear old California. I had asked Ajor to go with us; but +Jor her father had refused to listen to the suggestion. No pleas +could swerve him from his decision: Ajor, the cos-ata-lo, +from whom might spring a new and greater Caspakian race, could +not be spared. I might have any other she among the Galus; +but Ajor--no! + +The poor child was heartbroken; and as for me, I was slowly +realizing the hold that Ajor had upon my heart and wondered how +I should get along without her. As I held her in my arms that +last night, I tried to imagine what life would be like without +her, for at last there had come to me the realization that I +loved her--loved my little barbarian; and as I finally tore +myself away and went to my own hut to snatch a few hours' sleep +before we set off upon our long journey on the morrow, I +consoled myself with the thought that time would heal the wound +and that back in my native land I should find a mate who would +be all and more to me than little Ajor could ever be--a woman +of my own race and my own culture. + +Morning came more quickly than I could have wished. I rose and +breakfasted, but saw nothing of Ajor. It was best, I thought, +that I go thus without the harrowing pangs of a last farewell. +The party formed for the march, an escort of Galu warriors +ready to accompany us. I could not even bear to go to Ace's +corral and bid him farewell. The night before, I had given him +to Ajor, and now in my mind the two seemed inseparable. + +And so we marched away, down the street flanked with its stone +houses and out through the wide gateway in the stone wall which +surrounds the city and on across the clearing toward the forest +through which we must pass to reach the northern boundary of +Galu, beyond which we would turn south. At the edge of the +forest I cast a backward glance at the city which held my +heart, and beside the massive gateway I saw that which brought +me to a sudden halt. It was a little figure leaning against +one of the great upright posts upon which the gates swing--a +crumpled little figure; and even at this distance I could see +its shoulders heave to the sobs that racked it. It was the +last straw. + +Bowen was near me. "Good-bye old man," I said. "I'm going back." + +He looked at me in surprise. "Good-bye, old man," he said, and +grasped my hand. "I thought you'd do it in the end." + +And then I went back and took Ajor in my arms and kissed the +tears from her eyes and a smile to her lips while together we +watched the last of the Americans disappear into the forest. + + +The end of Project Gutenberg etext of "The People That Time Forgot" + + +I have made the following changes to the text: + +PAGE LINE ORIGINAL CHANGED TO + + 75 15 later latter + 108 14 in is + 123 24 the he + 131 13 plans planes + 131 28 new few + 132 24 Donosaur Dinosaur + + +The end of Project Gutenberg etext of "The People That Time Forgot" + diff --git a/old/poftm10.zip b/old/poftm10.zip Binary files differnew file mode 100644 index 0000000..9032198 --- /dev/null +++ b/old/poftm10.zip diff --git a/old/poftm11.txt b/old/poftm11.txt new file mode 100644 index 0000000..0c71e21 --- /dev/null +++ b/old/poftm11.txt @@ -0,0 +1,4151 @@ +The Project Gutenberg Etext of People Out Of Time +by Edgar Rice Burroughs +(#2 in The Land That Time Forgot Series by Edgar Rice Burroughs) + +Copyright laws are changing all over the world, be sure to check +the laws for your country before redistributing these files!!! + +Please take a look at the important information in this header. +We encourage you to keep this file on your own disk, keeping an +electronic path open for the next readers. + +Please do not remove this. + +This should be the first thing seen when anyone opens the book. +Do not change or edit it without written permission. 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Hart +and may be reprinted only when these Etexts are free of all fees.] +[Project Gutenberg is a TradeMark and may not be used in any sales +of Project Gutenberg Etexts or other materials be they hardware or +software or any other related product without express permission.] + +*END THE SMALL PRINT! FOR PUBLIC DOMAIN ETEXTS*Ver.07/27/01*END* + + + + + + + + + + + +Created by Judith Boss, Omaha, Nebraska + + + + + +The People That Time Forgot + +By Edgar Rice Burroughs + + + + + +Chapter 1 + + + + +I am forced to admit that even though I had traveled a long distance +to place Bowen Tyler's manuscript in the hands of his father, +I was still a trifle skeptical as to its sincerity, since I could +not but recall that it had not been many years since Bowen had been +one of the most notorious practical jokers of his alma mater. The +truth was that as I sat in the Tyler library at Santa Monica I +commenced to feel a trifle foolish and to wish that I had merely +forwarded the manuscript by express instead of bearing it personally, +for I confess that I do not enjoy being laughed at. I have a +well-developed sense of humor--when the joke is not on me. + +Mr. Tyler, Sr., was expected almost hourly. The last steamer in +from Honolulu had brought information of the date of the expected +sailing of his yacht Toreador, which was now twenty-four hours +overdue. Mr. Tyler's assistant secretary, who had been left +at home, assured me that there was no doubt but that the Toreador +had sailed as promised, since he knew his employer well enough to +be positive that nothing short of an act of God would prevent his +doing what he had planned to do. I was also aware of the fact +that the sending apparatus of the Toreador's wireless equipment was +sealed, and that it would only be used in event of dire necessity. +There was, therefore, nothing to do but wait, and we waited. + +We discussed the manuscript and hazarded guesses concerning it and +the strange events it narrated. The torpedoing of the liner upon +which Bowen J. Tyler, Jr., had taken passage for France to join +the American Ambulance was a well-known fact, and I had further +substantiated by wire to the New York office of the owners, that +a Miss La Rue had been booked for passage. Further, neither she +nor Bowen had been mentioned among the list of survivors; nor had +the body of either of them been recovered. + +Their rescue by the English tug was entirely probable; the capture +of the enemy U-33 by the tug's crew was not beyond the range +of possibility; and their adventures during the perilous cruise +which the treachery and deceit of Benson extended until they found +themselves in the waters of the far South Pacific with depleted +stores and poisoned water-casks, while bordering upon the +fantastic, appeared logical enough as narrated, event by event, in +the manuscript. + +Caprona has always been considered a more or less mythical land, +though it is vouched for by an eminent navigator of the eighteenth +century; but Bowen's narrative made it seem very real, however many +miles of trackless ocean lay between us and it. Yes, the narrative +had us guessing. We were agreed that it was most improbable; but +neither of us could say that anything which it contained was beyond +the range of possibility. The weird flora and fauna of Caspak were +as possible under the thick, warm atmospheric conditions of the +super-heated crater as they were in the Mesozoic era under almost +exactly similar conditions, which were then probably world-wide. +The assistant secretary had heard of Caproni and his discoveries, +but admitted that he never had taken much stock in the one nor the +other. We were agreed that the one statement most difficult of +explanation was that which reported the entire absence of human +young among the various tribes which Tyler had had intercourse. +This was the one irreconcilable statement of the manuscript. A +world of adults! It was impossible. + +We speculated upon the probable fate of Bradley and his party of +English sailors. Tyler had found the graves of two of them; how +many more might have perished! And Miss La Rue--could a young +girl long have survived the horrors of Caspak after having been +separated from all of her own kind? The assistant secretary wondered +if Nobs still was with her, and then we both smiled at this tacit +acceptance of the truth of the whole uncanny tale: + +"I suppose I'm a fool," remarked the assistant secretary; "but by +George, I can't help believing it, and I can see that girl now, +with the big Airedale at her side protecting her from the terrors +of a million years ago. I can visualize the entire scene--the apelike +Grimaldi men huddled in their filthy caves; the huge pterodactyls +soaring through the heavy air upon their bat-like wings; the mighty +dinosaurs moving their clumsy hulks beneath the dark shadows of +preglacial forests--the dragons which we considered myths until +science taught us that they were the true recollections of the +first man, handed down through countless ages by word of mouth from +father to son out of the unrecorded dawn of humanity." + +"It is stupendous--if true," I replied. "And to think that possibly +they are still there--Tyler and Miss La Rue--surrounded by hideous +dangers, and that possibly Bradley still lives, and some of his +party! I can't help hoping all the time that Bowen and the girl +have found the others; the last Bowen knew of them, there were six +left, all told--the mate Bradley, the engineer Olson, and Wilson, +Whitely, Brady and Sinclair. There might be some hope for them +if they could join forces; but separated, I'm afraid they couldn't +last long." + +"If only they hadn't let the German prisoners capture the U-33! +Bowen should have had better judgment than to have trusted them at +all. The chances are von Schoenvorts succeeded in getting safely +back to Kiel and is strutting around with an Iron Cross this very +minute. With a large supply of oil from the wells they discovered +in Caspak, with plenty of water and ample provisions, there is +no reason why they couldn't have negotiated the submerged tunnel +beneath the barrier cliffs and made good their escape." + +"I don't like 'em," said the assistant secretary; "but sometimes +you got to hand it to 'em." + +"Yes," I growled, "and there's nothing I'd enjoy more than handing +it to them!" And then the telephone-bell rang. + +The assistant secretary answered, and as I watched him, I saw his +jaw drop and his face go white. "My God!" he exclaimed as he hung +up the receiver as one in a trance. "It can't be!" + +"What?" I asked. + +"Mr. Tyler is dead," he answered in a dull voice. "He died at sea, +suddenly, yesterday." + +The next ten days were occupied in burying Mr. Bowen J. Tyler, Sr., +and arranging plans for the succor of his son. Mr. Tom Billings, +the late Mr. Tyler's secretary, did it all. He is force, energy, +initiative and good judgment combined and personified. I never +have beheld a more dynamic young man. He handled lawyers, courts +and executors as a sculptor handles his modeling clay. He formed, +fashioned and forced them to his will. He had been a classmate of +Bowen Tyler at college, and a fraternity brother, and before, that +he had been an impoverished and improvident cow-puncher on one of the +great Tyler ranches. Tyler, Sr., had picked him out of thousands +of employees and made him; or rather Tyler had given him the +opportunity, and then Billings had made himself. Tyler, Jr., as +good a judge of men as his father, had taken him into his friendship, +and between the two of them they had turned out a man who would +have died for a Tyler as quickly as he would have for his flag. Yet +there was none of the sycophant or fawner in Billings; ordinarily +I do not wax enthusiastic about men, but this man Billings comes +as close to my conception of what a regular man should be as any +I have ever met. I venture to say that before Bowen J. Tyler sent +him to college he had never heard the word ethics, and yet I am +equally sure that in all his life he never has transgressed a single +tenet of the code of ethics of an American gentleman. + +Ten days after they brought Mr. Tyler's body off the Toreador, +we steamed out into the Pacific in search of Caprona. There were +forty in the party, including the master and crew of the Toreador; +and Billings the indomitable was in command. We had a long and +uninteresting search for Caprona, for the old map upon which the +assistant secretary had finally located it was most inaccurate. +When its grim walls finally rose out of the ocean's mists before +us, we were so far south that it was a question as to whether we +were in the South Pacific or the Antarctic. Bergs were numerous, +and it was very cold. + +All during the trip Billings had steadfastly evaded questions as +to how we were to enter Caspak after we had found Caprona. Bowen +Tyler's manuscript had made it perfectly evident to all that the +subterranean outlet of the Caspakian River was the only means of +ingress or egress to the crater world beyond the impregnable cliffs. +Tyler's party had been able to navigate this channel because their +craft had been a submarine; but the Toreador could as easily have +flown over the cliffs as sailed under them. Jimmy Hollis and Colin +Short whiled away many an hour inventing schemes for surmounting +the obstacle presented by the barrier cliffs, and making ridiculous +wagers as to which one Tom Billings had in mind; but immediately +we were all assured that we had raised Caprona, Billings called us +together. + +"There was no use in talking about these things," he said, "until +we found the island. At best it can be but conjecture on our part +until we have been able to scrutinize the coast closely. Each +of us has formed a mental picture of the Capronian seacoast from +Bowen's manuscript, and it is not likely that any two of these +pictures resemble each other, or that any of them resemble the +coast as we shall presently find it. I have in view three plans +for scaling the cliffs, and the means for carrying out each is in +the hold. There is an electric drill with plenty of waterproof +cable to reach from the ship's dynamos to the cliff-top when the +Toreador is anchored at a safe distance from shore, and there is +sufficient half-inch iron rod to build a ladder from the base to +the top of the cliff. It would be a long, arduous and dangerous +work to bore the holes and insert the rungs of the ladder from the +bottom upward; yet it can be done. + +"I also have a life-saving mortar with which we might be able to +throw a line over the summit of the cliffs; but this plan would +necessitate one of us climbing to the top with the chances more +than even that the line would cut at the summit, or the hooks at +the upper end would slip. + +"My third plan seems to me the most feasible. You all saw a number +of large, heavy boxes lowered into the hold before we sailed. I +know you did, because you asked me what they contained and commented +upon the large letter 'H' which was painted upon each box. These +boxes contain the various parts of a hydro-aeroplane. I purpose +assembling this upon the strip of beach described in Bowen's +manuscript--the beach where he found the dead body of the apelike +man--provided there is sufficient space above high water; otherwise +we shall have to assemble it on deck and lower it over the side. +After it is assembled, I shall carry tackle and ropes to the +cliff-top, and then it will be comparatively simple to hoist the +search-party and its supplies in safety. Or I can make a sufficient +number of trips to land the entire party in the valley beyond the +barrier; all will depend, of course, upon what my first reconnaissance +reveals." + +That afternoon we steamed slowly along the face of Caprona's towering +barrier. + +"You see now," remarked Billings as we craned our necks to scan the +summit thousands of feet above us, "how futile it would have been +to waste our time in working out details of a plan to surmount those." +And he jerked his thumb toward the cliffs. "It would take weeks, +possibly months, to construct a ladder to the top. I had no +conception of their formidable height. Our mortar would not carry +a line halfway to the crest of the lowest point. There is no use +discussing any plan other than the hydro-aeroplane. We'll find +the beach and get busy." + +Late the following morning the lookout announced that he could +discern surf about a mile ahead; and as we approached, we all saw +the line of breakers broken by a long sweep of rolling surf upon +a narrow beach. The launch was lowered, and five of us made a +landing, getting a good ducking in the ice-cold waters in the doing +of it; but we were rewarded by the finding of the clean-picked +bones of what might have been the skeleton of a high order of ape +or a very low order of man, lying close to the base of the cliff. +Billings was satisfied, as were the rest of us, that this was the +beach mentioned by Bowen, and we further found that there was ample +room to assemble the sea-plane. + +Billings, having arrived at a decision, lost no time in acting, +with the result that before mid-afternoon we had landed all the +large boxes marked "H" upon the beach, and were busily engaged in +opening them. Two days later the plane was assembled and tuned. +We loaded tackles and ropes, water, food and ammunition in it, and +then we each implored Billings to let us be the one to accompany +him. But he would take no one. That was Billings; if there was +any especially difficult or dangerous work to be done, that one man +could do, Billings always did it himself. If he needed assistance, +he never called for volunteers--just selected the man or men he +considered best qualified for the duty. He said that he considered +the principles underlying all volunteer service fundamentally wrong, +and that it seemed to him that calling for volunteers reflected +upon the courage and loyalty of the entire command. + +We rolled the plane down to the water's edge, and Billings mounted +the pilot's seat. There was a moment's delay as he assured +himself that he had everything necessary. Jimmy Hollis went over +his armament and ammunition to see that nothing had been omitted. +Besides pistol and rifle, there was the machine-gun mounted in +front of him on the plane, and ammunition for all three. Bowen's +account of the terrors of Caspak had impressed us all with the +necessity for proper means of defense. + +At last all was ready. The motor was started, and we pushed the +plane out into the surf. A moment later, and she was skimming +seaward. Gently she rose from the surface of the water, executed +a wide spiral as she mounted rapidly, circled once far above us +and then disappeared over the crest of the cliffs. We all stood +silent and expectant, our eyes glued upon the towering summit above +us. Hollis, who was now in command, consulted his wrist-watch at +frequent intervals. + +"Gad," exclaimed Short, "we ought to be hearing from him pretty +soon!" + +Hollis laughed nervously. "He's been gone only ten minutes," he +announced. + +"Seems like an hour," snapped Short. "What's that? Did you hear +that? He's firing! It's the machine-gun! Oh, Lord; and here we +are as helpless as a lot of old ladies ten thousand miles away! +We can't do a thing. We don't know what's happening. Why didn't +he let one of us go with him?" + +Yes, it was the machine-gun. We would hear it distinctly for at +least a minute. Then came silence. That was two weeks ago. We +have had no sign nor signal from Tom Billings since. + + + + + +Chapter 2 + + + + +I'll never forget my first impressions of Caspak as I circled in, +high over the surrounding cliffs. From the plane I looked down +through a mist upon the blurred landscape beneath me. The hot, +humid atmosphere of Caspak condenses as it is fanned by the cold +Antarctic air-currents which sweep across the crater's top, sending +a tenuous ribbon of vapor far out across the Pacific. Through this +the picture gave one the suggestion of a colossal impressionistic +canvas in greens and browns and scarlets and yellows surrounding +the deep blue of the inland sea--just blobs of color taking form +through the tumbling mist. + +I dived close to the cliffs and skirted them for several miles +without finding the least indication of a suitable landing-place; +and then I swung back at a lower level, looking for a clearing close +to the bottom of the mighty escarpment; but I could find none of +sufficient area to insure safety. I was flying pretty low by this +time, not only looking for landing places but watching the myriad +life beneath me. I was down pretty well toward the south end +of the island, where an arm of the lake reaches far inland, and I +could see the surface of the water literally black with creatures +of some sort. I was too far up to recognize individuals, but the +general impression was of a vast army of amphibious monsters. The +land was almost equally alive with crawling, leaping, running, +flying things. It was one of the latter which nearly did for me +while my attention was fixed upon the weird scene below. + +The first intimation I had of it was the sudden blotting out of +the sunlight from above, and as I glanced quickly up, I saw a most +terrific creature swooping down upon me. It must have been fully +eighty feet long from the end of its long, hideous beak to the tip +of its thick, short tail, with an equal spread of wings. It was +coming straight for me and hissing frightfully--I could hear it +above the whir of the propeller. It was coming straight down toward +the muzzle of the machine-gun and I let it have it right in the +breast; but still it came for me, so that I had to dive and turn, +though I was dangerously close to earth. + +The thing didn't miss me by a dozen feet, and when I rose, it wheeled +and followed me, but only to the cooler air close to the level of +the cliff-tops; there it turned again and dropped. Something--man's +natural love of battle and the chase, I presume--impelled me to +pursue it, and so I too circled and dived. The moment I came down +into the warm atmosphere of Caspak, the creature came for me again, +rising above me so that it might swoop down upon me. Nothing could +better have suited my armament, since my machine-gun was pointed +upward at an angle of about degrees and could not be either depressed +or elevated by the pilot. If I had brought someone along with me, +we could have raked the great reptile from almost any position, but +as the creature's mode of attack was always from above, he always +found me ready with a hail of bullets. The battle must have lasted +a minute or more before the thing suddenly turned completely over +in the air and fell to the ground. + +Bowen and I roomed together at college, and I learned a lot from +him outside my regular course. He was a pretty good scholar despite +his love of fun, and his particular hobby was paleontology. He +used to tell me about the various forms of animal and vegetable life +which had covered the globe during former eras, and so I was pretty +well acquainted with the fishes, amphibians, reptiles, and mammals +of paleolithic times. I knew that the thing that had attacked me +was some sort of pterodactyl which should have been extinct millions +of years ago. It was all that I needed to realize that Bowen had +exaggerated nothing in his manuscript. + +Having disposed of my first foe, I set myself once more to search +for a landing-place near to the base of the cliffs beyond which my +party awaited me. I knew how anxious they would be for word from +me, and I was equally anxious to relieve their minds and also to +get them and our supplies well within Caspak, so that we might set +off about our business of finding and rescuing Bowen Tyler; but the +pterodactyl's carcass had scarcely fallen before I was surrounded +by at least a dozen of the hideous things, some large, some small, +but all bent upon my destruction. I could not cope with them all, +and so I rose rapidly from among them to the cooler strata wherein +they dared not follow; and then I recalled that Bowen's narrative +distinctly indicated that the farther north one traveled in Caspak, +the fewer were the terrible reptiles which rendered human life +impossible at the southern end of the island. + +There seemed nothing now but to search out a more northerly +landing-place and then return to the Toreador and transport my +companions, two by two, over the cliffs and deposit them at the +rendezvous. As I flew north, the temptation to explore overcame +me. I knew that I could easily cover Caspak and return to the +beach with less petrol than I had in my tanks; and there was the +hope, too, that I might find Bowen or some of his party. The broad +expanse of the inland sea lured me out over its waters, and as I +crossed, I saw at either extremity of the great body of water an +island--one to the south and one to the north; but I did not alter +my course to examine either closely, leaving that to a later time. + +The further shore of the sea revealed a much narrower strip of +land between the cliffs and the water than upon the western side; +but it was a hillier and more open country. There were splendid +landing-places, and in the distance, toward the north, I thought +I descried a village; but of that I was not positive. However, as +I approached the land, I saw a number of human figures apparently +pursuing one who fled across a broad expanse of meadow. As I +dropped lower to have a better look at these people, they caught +the whirring of my propellers and looked aloft. They paused an +instant--pursuers and pursued; and then they broke and raced for +the shelter of the nearest wood. Almost instantaneously a huge +bulk swooped down upon me, and as I looked up, I realized that there +were flying reptiles even in this part of Caspak. The creature +dived for my right wing so quickly that nothing but a sheer drop +could have saved me. I was already close to the ground, so that +my maneuver was extremely dangerous; but I was in a fair way of +making it successfully when I saw that I was too closely approaching +a large tree. My effort to dodge the tree and the pterodactyl at +the same time resulted disastrously. One wing touched an upper +branch; the plane tipped and swung around, and then, out of control, +dashed into the branches of the tree, where it came to rest, battered +and torn, forty feet above the ground. + +Hissing loudly, the huge reptile swept close above the tree in +which my plane had lodged, circled twice over me and then flapped +away toward the south. As I guessed then and was to learn later, +forests are the surest sanctuary from these hideous creatures, +which, with their enormous spread of wing and their great weight, +are as much out of place among trees as is a seaplane. + +For a minute or so I clung there to my battered flyer, now useless +beyond redemption, my brain numbed by the frightful catastrophe +that had befallen me. All my plans for the succor of Bowen and +Miss La Rue had depended upon this craft, and in a few brief minutes +my own selfish love of adventure had wrecked their hopes and mine. +And what effect it might have upon the future of the balance of +the rescuing expedition I could not even guess. Their lives, too, +might be sacrificed to my suicidal foolishness. That I was doomed +seemed inevitable; but I can honestly say that the fate of my +friends concerned me more greatly than did my own. + +Beyond the barrier cliffs my party was even now nervously awaiting +my return. Presently apprehension and fear would claim them--and +they would never know! They would attempt to scale the cliffs--of +that I was sure; but I was not so positive that they would succeed; and +after a while they would turn back, what there were left of them, +and go sadly and mournfully upon their return journey to home. +Home! I set my jaws and tried to forget the word, for I knew that +I should never again see home. + +And what of Bowen and his girl? I had doomed them too. They would +never even know that an attempt had been made to rescue them. If +they still lived, they might some day come upon the ruined remnants +of this great plane hanging in its lofty sepulcher and hazard vain +guesses and be filled with wonder; but they would never know; and +I could not but be glad that they would not know that Tom Billings +had sealed their death-warrants by his criminal selfishness. + +All these useless regrets were getting me in a bad way; but at last +I shook myself and tried to put such things out of my mind and take +hold of conditions as they existed and do my level best to wrest +victory from defeat. I was badly shaken up and bruised, but +considered myself mighty lucky to escape with my life. The plane +hung at a precarious angle, so that it was with difficulty and +considerable danger that I climbed from it into the tree and then +to the ground. + +My predicament was grave. Between me and my friends lay an +inland sea fully sixty miles wide at this point and an estimated +land-distance of some three hundred miles around the northern end +of the sea, through such hideous dangers as I am perfectly free +to admit had me pretty well buffaloed. I had seen quite enough of +Caspak this day to assure me that Bowen had in no way exaggerated +its perils. As a matter of fact, I am inclined to believe that +he had become so accustomed to them before he started upon his +manuscript that he rather slighted them. As I stood there beneath +that tree--a tree which should have been part of a coal-bed countless +ages since--and looked out across a sea teeming with frightful +life--life which should have been fossil before God conceived of +Adam--I would not have given a minim of stale beer for my chances +of ever seeing my friends or the outside world again; yet then +and there I swore to fight my way as far through this hideous land +as circumstances would permit. I had plenty of ammunition, an +automatic pistol and a heavy rifle--the latter one of twenty added +to our equipment on the strength of Bowen's description of the +huge beasts of prey which ravaged Caspak. My greatest danger lay +in the hideous reptilia whose low nervous organizations permitted +their carnivorous instincts to function for several minutes after +they had ceased to live. + +But to these things I gave less thought than to the sudden frustration of +all our plans. With the bitterest of thoughts I condemned myself +for the foolish weakness that had permitted me to be drawn from the +main object of my flight into premature and useless exploration. +It seemed to me then that I must be totally eliminated from further +search for Bowen, since, as I estimated it, the three hundred miles +of Caspakian territory I must traverse to reach the base of the +cliffs beyond which my party awaited me were practically impassable +for a single individual unaccustomed to Caspakian life and ignorant +of all that lay before him. Yet I could not give up hope entirely. +My duty lay clear before me; I must follow it while life remained +to me, and so I set forth toward the north. + +The country through which I took my way was as lovely as it was +unusual--I had almost said unearthly, for the plants, the trees, +the blooms were not of the earth that I knew. They were larger, +the colors more brilliant and the shapes startling, some almost to +grotesqueness, though even such added to the charm and romance of +the landscape as the giant cacti render weirdly beautiful the waste +spots of the sad Mohave. And over all the sun shone huge and round +and red, a monster sun above a monstrous world, its light dispersed +by the humid air of Caspak--the warm, moist air which lies sluggish +upon the breast of this great mother of life, Nature's mightiest +incubator. + +All about me, in every direction, was life. It moved through the +tree-tops and among the boles; it displayed itself in widening and +intermingling circles upon the bosom of the sea; it leaped from +the depths; I could hear it in a dense wood at my right, the murmur +of it rising and falling in ceaseless volumes of sound, riven at +intervals by a horrid scream or a thunderous roar which shook the +earth; and always I was haunted by that inexplicable sensation that +unseen eyes were watching me, that soundless feet dogged my trail. +I am neither nervous nor highstrung; but the burden of responsibility +upon me weighed heavily, so that I was more cautious than is my +wont. I turned often to right and left and rear lest I be surprised, +and I carried my rifle at the ready in my hand. Once I could have +sworn that among the many creatures dimly perceived amidst the +shadows of the wood I saw a human figure dart from one cover to +another, but I could not be sure. + +For the most part I skirted the wood, making occasional detours +rather than enter those forbidding depths of gloom, though many +times I was forced to pass through arms of the forest which extended +to the very shore of the inland sea. There was so sinister a +suggestion in the uncouth sounds and the vague glimpses of moving +things within the forest, of the menace of strange beasts and possibly +still stranger men, that I always breathed more freely when I had +passed once more into open country. + +I had traveled northward for perhaps an hour, still haunted by the +conviction that I was being stalked by some creature which kept +always hidden among the trees and shrubbery to my right and a +little to my rear, when for the hundredth time I was attracted by +a sound from that direction, and turning, saw some animal running +rapidly through the forest toward me. There was no longer any +effort on its part at concealment; it came on through the underbrush +swiftly, and I was confident that whatever it was, it had finally +gathered the courage to charge me boldly. Before it finally broke +into plain view, I became aware that it was not alone, for a few +yards in its rear a second thing thrashed through the leafy jungle. +Evidently I was to be attacked in force by a pair of hunting beasts +or men. + +And then through the last clump of waving ferns broke the figure of +the foremost creature, which came leaping toward me on light feet +as I stood with my rifle to my shoulder covering the point at which +I had expected it would emerge. I must have looked foolish indeed +if my surprise and consternation were in any way reflected upon +my countenance as I lowered my rifle and gazed incredulous at the +lithe figure of the girl speeding swiftly in my direction. But +I did not have long to stand thus with lowered weapon, for as she +came, I saw her cast an affrighted glance over her shoulder, and +at the same moment there broke from the jungle at the same spot at +which I had seen her, the hugest cat I had ever looked upon. + +At first I took the beast for a saber-tooth tiger, as it was quite +the most fearsome-appearing beast one could imagine; but it was not +that dread monster of the past, though quite formidable enough to +satisfy the most fastidious thrill-hunter. On it came, grim and +terrible, its baleful eyes glaring above its distended jaws, its +lips curled in a frightful snarl which exposed a whole mouthful of +formidable teeth. At sight of me it had abandoned its impetuous +rush and was now sneaking slowly toward us; while the girl, a long +knife in her hand, took her stand bravely at my left and a little +to my rear. She had called something to me in a strange tongue as +she raced toward me, and now she spoke again; but what she said I +could not then, of course, know--only that her tones were sweet, +well modulated and free from any suggestion of panic. + +Facing the huge cat, which I now saw was an enormous panther, +I waited until I could place a shot where I felt it would do the +most good, for at best a frontal shot at any of the large carnivora +is a ticklish matter. I had some advantage in that the beast was +not charging; its head was held low and its back exposed; and so +at forty yards I took careful aim at its spine at the junction of +neck and shoulders. But at the same instant, as though sensing my +intention, the great creature lifted its head and leaped forward +in full charge. To fire at that sloping forehead I knew would be +worse than useless, and so I quickly shifted my aim and pulled the +trigger, hoping against hope that the soft-nosed bullet and the +heavy charge of powder would have sufficient stopping effect to +give me time to place a second shot. + +In answer to the report of the rifle I had the satisfaction of seeing +the brute spring into the air, turning a complete somersault; but +it was up again almost instantly, though in the brief second that +it took it to scramble to its feet and get its bearings, it exposed +its left side fully toward me, and a second bullet went crashing +through its heart. Down it went for the second time--and then up +and at me. The vitality of these creatures of Caspak is one of +the marvelous features of this strange world and bespeaks the low +nervous organization of the old paleolithic life which has been so +long extinct in other portions of the world. + +I put a third bullet into the beast at three paces, and then I +thought that I was done for; but it rolled over and stopped at my +feet, stone dead. I found that my second bullet had torn its heart +almost completely away, and yet it had lived to charge ferociously +upon me, and but for my third shot would doubtless have slain me +before it finally expired--or as Bowen Tyler so quaintly puts it, +before it knew that it was dead. + +With the panther quite evidently conscious of the fact that dissolution +had overtaken it, I turned toward the girl, who was regarding me +with evident admiration and not a little awe, though I must admit +that my rifle claimed quite as much of her attention as did I. She +was quite the most wonderful animal that I have ever looked upon, +and what few of her charms her apparel hid, it quite effectively +succeeded in accentuating. A bit of soft, undressed leather was +caught over her left shoulder and beneath her right breast, falling +upon her left side to her hip and upon the right to a metal band +which encircled her leg above the knee and to which the lowest +point of the hide was attached. About her waist was a loose leather +belt, to the center of which was attached the scabbard belonging +to her knife. There was a single armlet between her right shoulder +and elbow, and a series of them covered her left forearm from elbow +to wrist. These, I learned later, answered the purpose of a shield +against knife attack when the left arm is raised in guard across +the breast or face. + +Her masses of heavy hair were held in place by a broad metal band +which bore a large triangular ornament directly in the center of +her forehead. This ornament appeared to be a huge turquoise, while +the metal of all her ornaments was beaten, virgin gold, inlaid in +intricate design with bits of mother-of-pearl and tiny pieces of +stone of various colors. From the left shoulder depended a leopard's +tail, while her feet were shod with sturdy little sandals. The +knife was her only weapon. Its blade was of iron, the grip was +wound with hide and protected by a guard of three out-bowing strips +of flat iron, and upon the top of the hilt was a knob of gold. + +I took in much of this in the few seconds during which we stood +facing each other, and I also observed another salient feature of +her appearance: she was frightfully dirty! Her face and limbs and +garment were streaked with mud and perspiration, and yet even so, +I felt that I had never looked upon so perfect and beautiful a +creature as she. Her figure beggars description, and equally so, +her face. Were I one of these writer-fellows, I should probably +say that her features were Grecian, but being neither a writer nor +a poet I can do her greater justice by saying that she combined all +of the finest lines that one sees in the typical American girl's +face rather than the pronounced sheeplike physiognomy of the +Greek goddess. No, even the dirt couldn't hide that fact; she was +beautiful beyond compare. + +As we stood looking at each other, a slow smile came to her face, +parting her symmetrical lips and disclosing a row of strong white +teeth. + +"Galu?" she asked with rising inflection. + +And remembering that I read in Bowen's manuscript that Galu seemed +to indicate a higher type of man, I answered by pointing to myself +and repeating the word. Then she started off on a regular catechism, +if I could judge by her inflection, for I certainly understood no +word of what she said. All the time the girl kept glancing toward +the forest, and at last she touched my arm and pointed in that +direction. + +Turning, I saw a hairy figure of a manlike thing standing watching +us, and presently another and another emerged from the jungle and +joined the leader until there must have been at least twenty of +them. They were entirely naked. Their bodies were covered with +hair, and though they stood upon their feet without touching their +hands to the ground, they had a very ape-like appearance, since they +stooped forward and had very long arms and quite apish features. +They were not pretty to look upon with their close-set eyes, flat +noses, long upper lips and protruding yellow fangs. + +"Alus!" said the girl. + +I had reread Bowen's adventures so often that I knew them almost by +heart, and so now I knew that I was looking upon the last remnant +of that ancient man-race--the Alus of a forgotten period--the +speechless man of antiquity. + +"Kazor!" cried the girl, and at the same moment the Alus came +jabbering toward us. They made strange growling, barking noises, +as with much baring of fangs they advanced upon us. They were +armed only with nature's weapons--powerful muscles and giant fangs; +yet I knew that these were quite sufficient to overcome us had we +nothing better to offer in defense, and so I drew my pistol and +fired at the leader. He dropped like a stone, and the others turned +and fled. Once again the girl smiled her slow smile and stepping +closer, caressed the barrel of my automatic. As she did so, her +fingers came in contact with mine, and a sudden thrill ran through +me, which I attributed to the fact that it had been so long since +I had seen a woman of any sort or kind. + +She said something to me in her low, liquid tones; but I could not +understand her, and then she pointed toward the north and started +away. I followed her, for my way was north too; but had it been +south I still should have followed, so hungry was I for human +companionship in this world of beasts and reptiles and half-men. + +We walked along, the girl talking a great deal and seeming mystified +that I could not understand her. Her silvery laugh rang merrily +when I in turn essayed to speak to her, as though my language was +the quaintest thing she ever had heard. Often after fruitless +attempts to make me understand she would hold her palm toward me, +saying, "Galu!" and then touch my breast or arm and cry, "Alu, alu!" +I knew what she meant, for I had learned from Bowen's narrative the +negative gesture and the two words which she repeated. She meant +that I was no Galu, as I claimed, but an Alu, or speechless one. +Yet every time she said this she laughed again, and so infectious +were her tones that I could only join her. It was only natural, +too, that she should be mystified by my inability to comprehend +her or to make her comprehend me, for from the club-men, the lowest +human type in Caspak to have speech, to the golden race of Galus, +the tongues of the various tribes are identical--except for +amplifications in the rising scale of evolution. She, who is a +Galu, can understand one of the Bo-lu and make herself understood +to him, or to a hatchet-man, a spear-man or an archer. The Ho-lus, +or apes, the Alus and myself were the only creatures of human +semblance with which she could hold no converse; yet it was evident +that her intelligence told her that I was neither Ho-lu nor Alu, +neither anthropoid ape nor speechless man. + +Yet she did not despair, but set out to teach me her language; and +had it not been that I worried so greatly over the fate of Bowen +and my companions of the Toreador, I could have wished the period +of instruction prolonged. + +I never have been what one might call a ladies' man, though I like +their company immensely, and during my college days and since have +made various friends among the sex. I think that I rather appeal +to a certain type of girl for the reason that I never make love +to them; I leave that to the numerous others who do it infinitely +better than I could hope to, and take my pleasure out of girls' +society in what seem to be more rational ways--dancing, golfing, +boating, riding, tennis, and the like. Yet in the company of this +half-naked little savage I found a new pleasure that was entirely +distinct from any that I ever had experienced. When she touched me, +I thrilled as I had never before thrilled in contact with another +woman. I could not quite understand it, for I am sufficiently +sophisticated to know that this is a symptom of love and I certainly +did not love this filthy little barbarian with her broken, unkempt +nails and her skin so besmeared with mud and the green of crushed +foliage that it was difficult to say what color it originally had +been. But if she was outwardly uncouth, her clear eyes and strong +white, even teeth, her silvery laugh and her queenly carriage, +bespoke an innate fineness which dirt could not quite successfully +conceal. + +The sun was low in the heavens when we came upon a little river +which emptied into a large bay at the foot of low cliffs. Our +journey so far had been beset with constant danger, as is every +journey in this frightful land. I have not bored you with a +recital of the wearying successions of attacks by the multitude of +creatures which were constantly crossing our path or deliberately +stalking us. We were always upon the alert; for here, to paraphrase, +eternal vigilance is indeed the price of life. + +I had managed to progress a little in the acquisition of a knowledge +of her tongue, so that I knew many of the animals and reptiles by +their Caspakian names, and trees and ferns and grasses. I knew +the words for sea and river and cliff, for sky and sun and cloud. +Yes, I was getting along finely, and then it occurred to me that I +didn't know my companion's name; so I pointed to myself and said, +"Tom," and to her and raised my eyebrows in interrogation. The +girl ran her fingers into that mass of hair and looked puzzled. I +repeated the action a dozen times. + +"Tom," she said finally in that clear, sweet, liquid voice. "Tom!" + +I had never thought much of my name before; but when she spoke it, +it sounded to me for the first time in my life like a mighty nice +name, and then she brightened suddenly and tapped her own breast +and said: "Ajor!" + +"Ajor!" I repeated, and she laughed and struck her palms together. + +Well, we knew each other's names now, and that was some satisfaction. +I rather liked hers--Ajor! And she seemed to like mine, for she +repeated it. + +We came to the cliffs beside the little river where it empties +into the bay with the great inland sea beyond. The cliffs were +weather-worn and rotted, and in one place a deep hollow ran back +beneath the overhanging stone for several feet, suggesting shelter +for the night. There were loose rocks strewn all about with which +I might build a barricade across the entrance to the cave, and so +I halted there and pointed out the place to Ajor, trying to make +her understand that we would spend the night there. + +As soon as she grasped my meaning, she assented with the Caspakian +equivalent of an affirmative nod, and then touching my rifle, +motioned me to follow her to the river. At the bank she paused, +removed her belt and dagger, dropping them to the ground at her +side; then unfastening the lower edge of her garment from the metal +leg-band to which it was attached, slipped it off her left shoulder +and let it drop to the ground around her feet. It was done so +naturally, so simply and so quickly that it left me gasping like +a fish out of water. Turning, she flashed a smile at me and then +dived into the river, and there she bathed while I stood guard +over her. For five or ten minutes she splashed about, and when +she emerged her glistening skin was smooth and white and beautiful. +Without means of drying herself, she simply ignored what to me +would have seemed a necessity, and in a moment was arrayed in her +simple though effective costume. + +It was now within an hour of darkness, and as I was nearly famished, +I led the way back about a quarter of a mile to a low meadow where +we had seen antelope and small horses a short time before. Here +I brought down a young buck, the report of my rifle sending the +balance of the herd scampering for the woods, where they were met +by a chorus of hideous roars as the carnivora took advantage of +their panic and leaped among them. + +With my hunting-knife I removed a hind-quarter, and then we returned +to camp. Here I gathered a great quantity of wood from fallen +trees, Ajor helping me; but before I built a fire, I also gathered +sufficient loose rock to build my barricade against the frightful +terrors of the night to come. + +I shall never forget the expression upon Ajor's face as she saw +me strike a match and light the kindling beneath our camp-fire. +It was such an expression as might transform a mortal face with +awe as its owner beheld the mysterious workings of divinity. It +was evident that Ajor was quite unfamiliar with modern methods of +fire-making. She had thought my rifle and pistol wonderful; but +these tiny slivers of wood which from a magic rub brought flame to +the camp hearth were indeed miracles to her. + +As the meat roasted above the fire, Ajor and I tried once again +to talk; but though copiously filled with incentive, gestures and +sounds, the conversation did not flourish notably. And then Ajor +took up in earnest the task of teaching me her language. She +commenced, as I later learned, with the simplest form of speech +known to Caspak or for that matter to the world--that employed by +the Bo-lu. I found it far from difficult, and even though it was +a great handicap upon my instructor that she could not speak my +language, she did remarkably well and demonstrated that she possessed +ingenuity and intelligence of a high order. + +After we had eaten, I added to the pile of firewood so that I could +replenish the fire before the entrance to our barricade, believing +this as good a protection against the carnivora as we could have; +and then Ajor and I sat down before it, and the lesson proceeded, +while from all about us came the weird and awesome noises of the +Caspakian night--the moaning and the coughing and roaring of the +tigers, the panthers and the lions, the barking and the dismal +howling of a wolf, jackal and hyaenadon, the shrill shrieks of +stricken prey and the hissing of the great reptiles; the voice of +man alone was silent. + +But though the voice of this choir-terrible rose and fell from +far and near in all directions, reaching at time such a tremendous +volume of sound that the earth shook to it, yet so engrossed was +I in my lesson and in my teacher that often I was deaf to what at +another time would have filled me with awe. The face and voice of +the beautiful girl who leaned so eagerly toward me as she tried to +explain the meaning of some word or correct my pronunciation of +another quite entirely occupied my every faculty of perception. +The firelight shone upon her animated features and sparkling eyes; +it accentuated the graceful motions of her gesturing arms and hands; +it sparkled from her white teeth and from her golden ornaments, and +glistened on the smooth firmness of her perfect skin. I am afraid +that often I was more occupied with admiration of this beautiful +animal than with a desire for knowledge; but be that as it may, +I nevertheless learned much that evening, though part of what I +learned had naught to do with any new language. + +Ajor seemed determined that I should speak Caspakian as quickly +as possible, and I thought I saw in her desire a little of that +all-feminine trait which has come down through all the ages from +the first lady of the world--curiosity. Ajor desired that I should +speak her tongue in order that she might satisfy a curiosity concerning +me that was filling her to a point where she was in danger of +bursting; of that I was positive. She was a regular little animated +question-mark. She bubbled over with interrogations which were +never to be satisfied unless I learned to speak her tongue. Her +eyes sparkled with excitement; her hand flew in expressive gestures; +her little tongue raced with time; yet all to no avail. I could +say man and tree and cliff and lion and a number of other words in +perfect Caspakian; but such a vocabulary was only tantalizing; it +did not lend itself well to a very general conversation, and the +result was that Ajor would wax so wroth that she would clench her +little fists and beat me on the breast as hard as ever she could, +and then she would sink back laughing as the humor of the situation +captured her. + +She was trying to teach me some verbs by going through the actions +herself as she repeated the proper word. We were very much +engrossed--so much so that we were giving no heed to what went on +beyond our cave--when Ajor stopped very suddenly, crying: "Kazor!" +Now she had been trying to teach me that ju meant stop; so when she +cried kazor and at the same time stopped, I thought for a moment +that this was part of my lesson--for the moment I forgot that kazor +means beware. I therefore repeated the word after her; but when +I saw the expression in her eyes as they were directed past me and +saw her point toward the entrance to the cave, I turned quickly--to +see a hideous face at the small aperture leading out into the night. +It was the fierce and snarling countenance of a gigantic bear. I +have hunted silvertips in the White Mountains of Arizona and thought +them quite the largest and most formidable of big game; but from +the appearance of the head of this awful creature I judged that +the largest grizzly I had ever seen would shrink by comparison to +the dimensions of a Newfoundland dog. + +Our fire was just within the cave, the smoke rising through the +apertures between the rocks that I had piled in such a way that +they arched inward toward the cliff at the top. The opening by +means of which we were to reach the outside was barricaded with a +few large fragments which did not by any means close it entirely; +but through the apertures thus left no large animal could gain +ingress. I had depended most, however, upon our fire, feeling +that none of the dangerous nocturnal beasts of prey would venture +close to the flames. In this, however, I was quite evidently +in error, for the great bear stood with his nose not a foot from +the blaze, which was now low, owing to the fact that I had been +so occupied with my lesson and my teacher that I had neglected to +replenish it. + +Ajor whipped out her futile little knife and pointed to my rifle. +At the same time she spoke in a quite level voice entirely devoid +of nervousness or any evidence of fear or panic. I knew she was +exhorting me to fire upon the beast; but this I did not wish to +do other than as a last resort, for I was quite sure that even my +heavy bullets would not more than further enrage him--in which case +he might easily force an entrance to our cave. + +Instead of firing, I piled some more wood upon the fire, and as the +smoke and blaze arose in the beast's face, it backed away, growling +most frightfully; but I still could see two ugly points of light +blazing in the outer darkness and hear its growls rumbling terrifically +without. For some time the creature stood there watching the +entrance to our frail sanctuary while I racked my brains in futile +endeavor to plan some method of defense or escape. I knew full +well that should the bear make a determined effort to get at us, +the rocks I had piled as a barrier would come tumbling down about +his giant shoulders like a house of cards, and that he would walk +directly in upon us. + +Ajor, having less knowledge of the effectiveness of firearms than +I, and therefore greater confidence in them, entreated me to shoot +the beast; but I knew that the chance that I could stop it with a +single shot was most remote, while that I should but infuriate it +was real and present; and so I waited for what seemed an eternity, +watching those devilish points of fire glaring balefully at us, and +listening to the ever-increasing volume of those seismic growls which +seemed to rumble upward from the bowels of the earth, shaking the +very cliffs beneath which we cowered, until at last I saw that the +brute was again approaching the aperture. It availed me nothing +that I piled the blaze high with firewood, until Ajor and I were +near to roasting; on came that mighty engine of destruction until +once again the hideous face yawned its fanged yawn directly within +the barrier's opening. It stood thus a moment, and then the head +was withdrawn. I breathed a sigh of relief, the thing had altered +its intention and was going on in search of other and more easily +procurable prey; the fire had been too much for it. + +But my joy was short-lived, and my heart sank once again as a +moment later I saw a mighty paw insinuated into the opening--a paw +as large around as a large dishpan. Very gently the paw toyed with +the great rock that partly closed the entrance, pushed and pulled +upon it and then very deliberately drew it outward and to one side. +Again came the head, and this time much farther into the cavern; +but still the great shoulders would not pass through the opening. +Ajor moved closer to me until her shoulder touched my side, and I +thought I felt a slight tremor run through her body, but otherwise +she gave no indication of fear. Involuntarily I threw my left +arm about her and drew her to me for an instant. It was an act of +reassurance rather than a caress, though I must admit that again +and even in the face of death I thrilled at the contact with her; +and then I released her and threw my rifle to my shoulder, for at +last I had reached the conclusion that nothing more could be gained +by waiting. My only hope was to get as many shots into the creature +as I could before it was upon me. Already it had torn away a second +rock and was in the very act of forcing its huge bulk through the +opening it had now made. + +So now I took careful aim between its eyes; my right fingers +closed firmly and evenly upon the small of the stock, drawing back +my trigger-finger by the muscular action of the hand. The bullet +could not fail to hit its mark! I held my breath lest I swerve +the muzzle a hair by my breathing. I was as steady and cool as I +ever had been upon a target-range, and I had the full consciousness of +a perfect hit in anticipation; I knew that I could not miss. And +then, as the bear surged forward toward me, the hammer fell--futilely, +upon an imperfect cartridge. + +Almost simultaneously I heard from without a perfectly hellish +roar; the bear gave voice to a series of growls far transcending +in volume and ferocity anything that he had yet essayed and at the +same time backed quickly from the cave. For an instant I couldn't +understand what had happened to cause this sudden retreat when +his prey was practically within his clutches. The idea that the +harmless clicking of the hammer had frightened him was too ridiculous +to entertain. However, we had not long to wait before we could at +least guess at the cause of the diversion, for from without came +mingled growls and roars and the sound of great bodies thrashing +about until the earth shook. The bear had been attacked in the +rear by some other mighty beast, and the two were now locked in a +titanic struggle for supremacy. With brief respites, during which +we could hear the labored breathing of the contestants, the battle +continued for the better part of an hour until the sounds of combat +grew gradually less and finally ceased entirely. + +At Ajor's suggestion, made by signs and a few of the words we knew +in common, I moved the fire directly to the entrance to the cave +so that a beast would have to pass directly through the flames to +reach us, and then we sat and waited for the victor of the battle +to come and claim his reward; but though we sat for a long time +with our eyes glued to the opening, we saw no sign of any beast. + +At last I signed to Ajor to lie down, for I knew that she must +have sleep, and I sat on guard until nearly morning, when the girl +awoke and insisted that I take some rest; nor would she be denied, +but dragged me down as she laughingly menaced me with her knife. + + + + + +Chapter 3 + + + + +When I awoke, it was daylight, and I found Ajor squatting before a +fine bed of coals roasting a large piece of antelope-meat. Believe +me, the sight of the new day and the delicious odor of the cooking +meat filled me with renewed happiness and hope that had been all +but expunged by the experience of the previous night; and perhaps +the slender figure of the bright-faced girl proved also a potent +restorative. She looked up and smiled at me, showing those perfect +teeth, and dimpling with evident happiness--the most adorable +picture that I had ever seen. I recall that it was then I first +regretted that she was only a little untutored savage and so far +beneath me in the scale of evolution. + +Her first act was to beckon me to follow her outside, and there +she pointed to the explanation of our rescue from the bear--a huge +saber-tooth tiger, its fine coat and its flesh torn to ribbons, +lying dead a few paces from our cave, and beside it, equally mangled, +and disemboweled, was the carcass of a huge cave-bear. To have +had one's life saved by a saber-tooth tiger, and in the twentieth +century into the bargain, was an experience that was to say the +least unique; but it had happened--I had the proof of it before my +eyes. + +So enormous are the great carnivora of Caspak that they must feed +perpetually to support their giant thews, and the result is that +they will eat the meat of any other creature and will attack anything +that comes within their ken, no matter how formidable the quarry. +From later observation--I mention this as worthy the attention +of paleontologists and naturalists--I came to the conclusion that +such creatures as the cave-bear, the cave-lion and the saber-tooth +tiger, as well as the larger carnivorous reptiles make, ordinarily, +two kills a day--one in the morning and one after night. They +immediately devour the entire carcass, after which they lie up and +sleep for a few hours. Fortunately their numbers are comparatively +few; otherwise there would be no other life within Caspak. It is +their very voracity that keeps their numbers down to a point which +permits other forms of life to persist, for even in the season of +love the great males often turn upon their own mates and devour +them, while both males and females occasionally devour their young. +How the human and semihuman races have managed to survive during +all the countless ages that these conditions must have existed here +is quite beyond me. + +After breakfast Ajor and I set out once more upon our northward +journey. We had gone but a little distance when we were attacked +by a number of apelike creatures armed with clubs. They seemed a +little higher in the scale than the Alus. Ajor told me they were +Bo-lu, or clubmen. A revolver-shot killed one and scattered the +others; but several times later during the day we were menaced +by them, until we had left their country and entered that of the +Sto-lu, or hatchet-men. These people were less hairy and more +man-like; nor did they appear so anxious to destroy us. Rather +they were curious, and followed us for some distance examining us +most closely. They called out to us, and Ajor answered them; but +her replies did not seem to satisfy them, for they gradually became +threatening, and I think they were preparing to attack us when a +small deer that had been hiding in some low brush suddenly broke +cover and dashed across our front. We needed meat, for it was near +one o'clock and I was getting hungry; so I drew my pistol and with +a single shot dropped the creature in its tracks. The effect upon +the Bo-lu was electrical. Immediately they abandoned all thoughts +of war, and turning, scampered for the forest which fringed our +path. + +That night we spent beside a little stream in the Sto-lu country. +We found a tiny cave in the rock bank, so hidden away that only +chance could direct a beast of prey to it, and after we had eaten +of the deer-meat and some fruit which Ajor gathered, we crawled into +the little hole, and with sticks and stones which I had gathered +for the purpose I erected a strong barricade inside the entrance. +Nothing could reach us without swimming and wading through the +stream, and I felt quite secure from attack. Our quarters were +rather cramped. The ceiling was so low that we could not stand up, +and the floor so narrow that it was with difficulty that we both +wedged into it together; but we were very tired, and so we made +the most of it; and so great was the feeling of security that I am +sure I fell asleep as soon as I had stretched myself beside Ajor. + +During the three days which followed, our progress was exasperatingly +slow. I doubt if we made ten miles in the entire three days. The +country was hideously savage, so that we were forced to spend hours +at a time in hiding from one or another of the great beasts which +menaced us continually. There were fewer reptiles; but the quantity +of carnivora seemed to have increased, and the reptiles that we +did see were perfectly gigantic. I shall never forget one enormous +specimen which we came upon browsing upon water-reeds at the edge +of the great sea. It stood well over twelve feet high at the rump, +its highest point, and with its enormously long tail and neck it +was somewhere between seventy-five and a hundred feet in length. +Its head was ridiculously small; its body was unarmored, but its +great bulk gave it a most formidable appearance. My experience of +Caspakian life led me to believe that the gigantic creature would +but have to see us to attack us, and so I raised my rifle and at +the same time drew away toward some brush which offered concealment; +but Ajor only laughed, and picking up a stick, ran toward the great +thing, shouting. The little head was raised high upon the long +neck as the animal stupidly looked here and there in search of the +author of the disturbance. At last its eyes discovered tiny little +Ajor, and then she hurled the stick at the diminutive head. With +a cry that sounded not unlike the bleat of a sheep, the colossal +creature shuffled into the water and was soon submerged. + +As I slowly recalled my collegiate studies and paleontological +readings in Bowen's textbooks, I realized that I had looked upon +nothing less than a diplodocus of the Upper Jurassic; but how infinitely +different was the true, live thing from the crude restorations of +Hatcher and Holland! I had had the idea that the diplodocus was +a land-animal, but evidently it is partially amphibious. I have +seen several since my first encounter, and in each case the creature +took to the sea for concealment as soon as it was disturbed. With +the exception of its gigantic tail, it has no weapon of defense; +but with this appendage it can lash so terrific a blow as to lay +low even a giant cave-bear, stunned and broken. It is a stupid, +simple, gentle beast--one of the few within Caspak which such a +description might even remotely fit. + +For three nights we slept in trees, finding no caves or other +places of concealment. Here we were free from the attacks of the +large land carnivora; but the smaller flying reptiles, the snakes, +leopards, and panthers were a constant menace, though by no means +as much to be feared as the huge beasts that roamed the surface of +the earth. + +At the close of the third day Ajor and I were able to converse +with considerable fluency, and it was a great relief to both of us, +especially to Ajor. She now did nothing but ask questions whenever +I would let her, which could not be all the time, as our preservation +depended largely upon the rapidity with which I could gain knowledge +of the geography and customs of Caspak, and accordingly I had to +ask numerous questions myself. + +I enjoyed immensely hearing and answering her, so naive were many +of her queries and so filled with wonder was she at the things +I told her of the world beyond the lofty barriers of Caspak; not +once did she seem to doubt me, however marvelous my statements must +have seemed; and doubtless they were the cause of marvel to Ajor, +who before had never dreamed that any life existed beyond Caspak +and the life she knew. + +Artless though many of her questions were, they evidenced a keen +intellect and a shrewdness which seemed far beyond her years of +her experience. Altogether I was finding my little savage a mighty +interesting and companionable person, and I often thanked the kind +fate that directed the crossing of our paths. From her I learned +much of Caspak, but there still remained the mystery that had proved +so baffling to Bowen Tyler--the total absence of young among the +ape, the semihuman and the human races with which both he and I +had come in contact upon opposite shores of the inland sea. Ajor +tried to explain the matter to me, though it was apparent that +she could not conceive how so natural a condition should demand +explanation. She told me that among the Galus there were a few +babies, that she had once been a baby but that most of her people +"came up," as he put it, "cor sva jo," or literally, "from the +beginning"; and as they all did when they used that phrase, she +would wave a broad gesture toward the south. + +"For long," she explained, leaning very close to me and whispering +the words into my ear while she cast apprehensive glances about +and mostly skyward, "for long my mother kept me hidden lest the +Wieroo, passing through the air by night, should come and take me +away to Oo-oh." And the child shuddered as she voiced the word. I +tried to get her to tell me more; but her terror was so real when +she spoke of the Wieroo and the land of Oo-oh where they dwell that +I at last desisted, though I did learn that the Wieroo carried off +only female babes and occasionally women of the Galus who had "come +up from the beginning." It was all very mysterious and unfathomable, +but I got the idea that the Wieroo were creatures of imagination--the +demons or gods of her race, omniscient and omnipresent. This led +me to assume that the Galus had a religious sense, and further +questioning brought out the fact that such was the case. Ajor +spoke in tones of reverence of Luata, the god of heat and life. +The word is derived from two others: Lua, meaning sun, and ata, +meaning variously eggs, life, young, and reproduction. She told +me that they worshiped Luata in several forms, as fire, the sun, +eggs and other material objects which suggested heat and reproduction. + +I had noticed that whenever I built a fire, Ajor outlined in the +air before her with a forefinger an isosceles triangle, and that +she did the same in the morning when she first viewed the sun. At +first I had not connected her act with anything in particular, but +after we learned to converse and she had explained a little of her +religious superstitions, I realized that she was making the sign +of the triangle as a Roman Catholic makes the sign of the cross. +Always the short side of the triangle was uppermost. As she +explained all this to me, she pointed to the decorations on her +golden armlets, upon the knob of her dagger-hilt and upon the band +which encircled her right leg above the knee--always was the design +partly made up of isosceles triangles, and when she explained the +significance of this particular geometric figure, I at once grasped +its appropriateness. + +We were now in the country of the Band-lu, the spearmen of Caspak. +Bowen had remarked in his narrative that these people were analogous +to the so-called Cro-Magnon race of the Upper Paleolithic, and I was +therefore very anxious to see them. Nor was I to be disappointed; +I saw them, all right! We had left the Sto-lu country and literally +fought our way through cordons of wild beasts for two days when +we decided to make camp a little earlier than usual, owing to the +fact that we had reached a line of cliffs running east and west in +which were numerous likely cave-lodgings. We were both very tired, +and the sight of these caverns, several of which could be easily +barricaded, decided us to halt until the following morning. It took +but a few minutes' exploration to discover one particular cavern +high up the face of the cliff which seemed ideal for our purpose. +It opened upon a narrow ledge where we could build our cook-fire; +the opening was so small that we had to lie flat and wriggle through +it to gain ingress, while the interior was high-ceiled and spacious. +I lighted a faggot and looked about; but as far as I could see, +the chamber ran back into the cliff. + +Laying aside my rifle, pistol and heavy ammunition-belt, I left +Ajor in the cave while I went down to gather firewood. We already +had meat and fruits which we had gathered just before reaching the +cliffs, and my canteen was filled with fresh water. Therefore, all +we required was fuel, and as I always saved Ajor's strength when I +could, I would not permit her to accompany me. The poor girl was +very tired; but she would have gone with me until she dropped, +I know, so loyal was she. She was the best comrade in the world, +and sometimes I regretted and sometimes I was glad that she was +not of my own caste, for had she been, I should unquestionably have +fallen in love with her. As it was, we traveled together like two +boys, with huge respect for each other but no softer sentiment. + +There was little timber close to the base of the cliffs, and so +I was forced to enter the wood some two hundred yards distant. I +realize now how foolhardy was my act in such a land as Caspak, +teeming with danger and with death; but there is a certain amount +of fool in every man; and whatever proportion of it I own must +have been in the ascendant that day, for the truth of the matter +is that I went down into those woods absolutely defenseless; and I +paid the price, as people usually do for their indiscretions. As +I searched around in the brush for likely pieces of firewood, my +head bowed and my eyes upon the ground, I suddenly felt a great +weight hurl itself upon me. I struggled to my knees and seized +my assailant, a huge, naked man--naked except for a breechcloth +of snakeskin, the head hanging down to the knees. The fellow was +armed with a stone-shod spear, a stone knife and a hatchet. In his +black hair were several gay-colored feathers. As we struggled to +and fro, I was slowly gaining advantage of him, when a score of +his fellows came running up and overpowered me. + +They bound my hands behind me with long rawhide thongs and then +surveyed me critically. I found them fine-looking specimens of +manhood, for the most part. There were some among them who bore +a resemblance to the Sto-lu and were hairy; but the majority had +massive heads and not unlovely features. There was little about them +to suggest the ape, as in the Sto-lu, Bo-lu and Alus. I expected +them to kill me at once, but they did not. Instead they questioned +me; but it was evident that they did not believe my story, for they +scoffed and laughed. + +"The Galus have turned you out," they cried. "If you go back to +them, you will die. If you remain here, you will die. We shall +kill you; but first we shall have a dance and you shall dance with +us--the dance of death." + +It sounded quite reassuring! But I knew that I was not to be killed +immediately, and so I took heart. They led me toward the cliffs, +and as we approached them, I glanced up and was sure that I saw +Ajor's bright eyes peering down upon us from our lofty cave; but +she gave no sign if she saw me; and we passed on, rounded the end +of the cliffs and proceeded along the opposite face of them until +we came to a section literally honeycombed with caves. All about, +upon the ground and swarming the ledges before the entrances, were +hundreds of members of the tribe. There were many women but no +babes or children, though I noticed that the females had better +developed breasts than any that I had seen among the hatchet-men, +the club-men, the Alus or the apes. In fact, among the lower +orders of Caspakian man the female breast is but a rudimentary +organ, barely suggested in the apes and Alus, and only a little +more defined in the Bo-lu and Sto-lu, though always increasingly +so until it is found about half developed in the females of the +spear-men; yet never was there an indication that the females had +suckled young; nor were there any young among them. Some of the +Band-lu women were quite comely. The figures of all, both men and +women, were symmetrical though heavy, and though there were some +who verged strongly upon the Sto-lu type, there were others who +were positively handsome and whose bodies were quite hairless. The +Alus are all bearded, but among the Bo-lu the beard disappears in +the women. The Sto-lu men show a sparse beard, the Band-lu none; +and there is little hair upon the bodies of their women. + +The members of the tribe showed great interest in me, especially +in my clothing, the like of which, of course, they never had seen. +They pulled and hauled upon me, and some of them struck me; but for +the most part they were not inclined to brutality. It was only the +hairier ones, who most closely resembled the Sto-lu, who maltreated +me. At last my captors led me into a great cave in the mouth +of which a fire was burning. The floor was littered with filth, +including the bones of many animals, and the atmosphere reeked +with the stench of human bodies and putrefying flesh. Here they +fed me, releasing my arms, and I ate of half-cooked aurochs steak +and a stew which may have been made of snakes, for many of the +long, round pieces of meat suggested them most nauseatingly. + +The meal completed, they led me well within the cavern, which they +lighted with torches stuck in various crevices in the light of +which I saw, to my astonishment, that the walls were covered with +paintings and etchings. There were aurochs, red deer, saber-tooth +tiger, cave-bear, hyaenadon and many other examples of the fauna of +Caspak done in colors, usually of four shades of brown, or scratched +upon the surface of the rock. Often they were super-imposed upon +each other until it required careful examination to trace out the +various outlines. But they all showed a rather remarkable aptitude +for delineation which further fortified Bowen's comparisons between +these people and the extinct Cro-Magnons whose ancient art is still +preserved in the caverns of Niaux and Le Portel. The Band-lu, +however, did not have the bow and arrow, and in this respect they +differ from their extinct progenitors, or descendants, of Western +Europe. + +Should any of my friends chance to read the story of my adventures +upon Caprona, I hope they will not be bored by these diversions, +and if they are, I can only say that I am writing my memoirs for +my own edification and therefore setting down those things which +interested me particularly at the time. I have no desire that +the general public should ever have access to these pages; but it +is possible that my friends may, and also certain savants who are +interested; and to them, while I do not apologize for my philosophizing, +I humbly explain that they are witnessing the groupings of a +finite mind after the infinite, the search for explanations of the +inexplicable. + +In a far recess of the cavern my captors bade me halt. Again +my hands were secured, and this time my feet as well. During the +operation they questioned me, and I was mighty glad that the marked +similarity between the various tribal tongues of Caspak enabled us +to understand each other perfectly, even though they were unable +to believe or even to comprehend the truth of my origin and the +circumstances of my advent in Caspak; and finally they left me +saying that they would come for me before the dance of death upon +the morrow. Before they departed with their torches, I saw that +I had not been conducted to the farthest extremity of the cavern, +for a dark and gloomy corridor led beyond my prison room into the +heart of the cliff. + +I could not but marvel at the immensity of this great underground +grotto. Already I had traversed several hundred yards of it, from +many points of which other corridors diverged. The whole cliff +must be honeycombed with apartments and passages of which this +community occupied but a comparatively small part, so that the +possibility of the more remote passages being the lair of savage +beasts that have other means of ingress and egress than that used +by the Band-lu filled me with dire forebodings. + +I believe that I am not ordinarily hysterically apprehensive; yet +I must confess that under the conditions with which I was confronted, +I felt my nerves to be somewhat shaken. On the morrow I was to die +some sort of nameless death for the diversion of a savage horde, +but the morrow held fewer terrors for me than the present, and +I submit to any fair-minded man if it is not a terrifying thing +to lie bound hand and foot in the Stygian blackness of an immense +cave peopled by unknown dangers in a land overrun by hideous beasts +and reptiles of the greatest ferocity. At any moment, perhaps at +this very moment, some silent-footed beast of prey might catch my +scent where it laired in some contiguous passage, and might creep +stealthily upon me. I craned my neck about, and stared through the +inky darkness for the twin spots of blazing hate which I knew would +herald the coming of my executioner. So real were the imaginings +of my overwrought brain that I broke into a cold sweat in absolute +conviction that some beast was close before me; yet the hours +dragged, and no sound broke the grave-like stillness of the cavern. + +During that period of eternity many events of my life passed before +my mental vision, a vast parade of friends and occurrences which +would be blotted out forever on the morrow. I cursed myself for +the foolish act which had taken me from the search-party that so +depended upon me, and I wondered what progress, if any, they had +made. Were they still beyond the barrier cliffs, awaiting my return? +Or had they found a way into Caspak? I felt that the latter would +be the truth, for the party was not made up of men easily turned +from a purpose. Quite probable it was that they were already +searching for me; but that they would ever find a trace of me +I doubted. Long since, had I come to the conclusion that it was +beyond human prowess to circle the shores of the inland sea of Caspak +in the face of the myriad menaces which lurked in every shadow by +day and by night. Long since, had I given up any hope of reaching +the point where I had made my entry into the country, and so I was +now equally convinced that our entire expedition had been worse +than futile before ever it was conceived, since Bowen J. Tyler +and his wife could not by any possibility have survived during all +these long months; no more could Bradley and his party of seamen +be yet in existence. If the superior force and equipment of my +party enabled them to circle the north end of the sea, they might +some day come upon the broken wreck of my plane hanging in the +great tree to the south; but long before that, my bones would be +added to the litter upon the floor of this mighty cavern. + +And through all my thoughts, real and fanciful, moved the image of +a perfect girl, clear-eyed and strong and straight and beautiful, +with the carriage of a queen and the supple, undulating grace of +a leopard. Though I loved my friends, their fate seemed of less +importance to me than the fate of this little barbarian stranger +for whom, I had convinced myself many a time, I felt no greater +sentiment than passing friendship for a fellow-wayfarer in this +land of horrors. Yet I so worried and fretted about her and her +future that at last I quite forgot my own predicament, though I +still struggled intermittently with bonds in vain endeavor to free +myself; as much, however, that I might hasten to her protection as +that I might escape the fate which had been planned for me. And +while I was thus engaged and had for the moment forgotten my +apprehensions concerning prowling beasts, I was startled into tense +silence by a distinct and unmistakable sound coming from the dark +corridor farther toward the heart of the cliff--the sound of padded +feet moving stealthily in my direction. + +I believe that never before in all my life, even amidst the terrors +of childhood nights, have I suffered such a sensation of extreme +horror as I did that moment in which I realized that I must lie +bound and helpless while some horrid beast of prey crept upon me +to devour me in that utter darkness of the Bandlu pits of Caspak. +I reeked with cold sweat, and my flesh crawled--I could feel it +crawl. If ever I came nearer to abject cowardice, I do not recall +the instance; and yet it was not that I was afraid to die, for I +had long since given myself up as lost--a few days of Caspak must +impress anyone with the utter nothingness of life. The waters, +the land, the air teem with it, and always it is being devoured +by some other form of life. Life is the cheapest thing in Caspak, +as it is the cheapest thing on earth and, doubtless, the cheapest +cosmic production. No, I was not afraid to die; in fact, I +prayed for death, that I might be relieved of the frightfulness of +the interval of life which remained to me--the waiting, the awful +waiting, for that fearsome beast to reach me and to strike. + +Presently it was so close that I could hear its breathing, and then +it touched me and leaped quickly back as though it had come upon +me unexpectedly. For long moments no sound broke the sepulchral +silence of the cave. Then I heard a movement on the part of the +creature near me, and again it touched me, and I felt something +like a hairless hand pass over my face and down until it touched +the collar of my flannel shirt. And then, subdued, but filled with +pent emotion, a voice cried: "Tom!" + +I think I nearly fainted, so great was the reaction. "Ajor!" I +managed to say. "Ajor, my girl, can it be you?" + +"Oh, Tom!" she cried again in a trembly little voice and flung +herself upon me, sobbing softly. I had not known that Ajor could +cry. + +As she cut away my bonds, she told me that from the entrance to +our cave she had seen the Band-lu coming out of the forest with +me, and she had followed until they took me into the cave, which +she had seen was upon the opposite side of the cliff in which ours +was located; and then, knowing that she could do nothing for me +until after the Band-lu slept, she had hastened to return to our +cave. With difficulty she had reached it, after having been stalked +by a cave-lion and almost seized. I trembled at the risk she had +run. + +It had been her intention to wait until after midnight, when most +of the carnivora would have made their kills, and then attempt +to reach the cave in which I was imprisoned and rescue me. She +explained that with my rifle and pistol--both of which she assured +me she could use, having watched me so many times--she planned +upon frightening the Band-lu and forcing them to give me up. Brave +little girl! She would have risked her life willingly to save me. +But some time after she reached our cave she heard voices from +the far recesses within, and immediately concluded that we had but +found another entrance to the caves which the Band-lu occupied upon +the other face of the cliff. Then she had set out through those +winding passages and in total darkness had groped her way, guided +solely by a marvelous sense of direction, to where I lay. She had +had to proceed with utmost caution lest she fall into some abyss +in the darkness and in truth she had thrice come upon sheer drops +and had been forced to take the most frightful risks to pass them. +I shudder even now as I contemplate what this girl passed through +for my sake and how she enhanced her peril in loading herself down +with the weight of my arms and ammunition and the awkwardness of +the long rifle which she was unaccustomed to bearing. + +I could have knelt and kissed her hand in reverence and gratitude; +nor am I ashamed to say that that is precisely what I did after +I had been freed from my bonds and heard the story of her trials. +Brave little Ajor! Wonder-girl out of the dim, unthinkable past! +Never before had she been kissed; but she seemed to sense something +of the meaning of the new caress, for she leaned forward in the +dark and pressed her own lips to my forehead. A sudden urge surged +through me to seize her and strain her to my bosom and cover her +hot young lips with the kisses of a real love, but I did not do so, +for I knew that I did not love her; and to have kissed her thus, +with passion, would have been to inflict a great wrong upon her +who had offered her life for mine. + +No, Ajor should be as safe with me as with her own mother, if she +had one, which I was inclined to doubt, even though she told me that +she had once been a babe and hidden by her mother. I had come to +doubt if there was such a thing as a mother in Caspak, a mother +such as we know. From the Bo-lu to the Kro-lu there is no word +which corresponds with our word mother. They speak of ata and +cor sva jo, meaning reproduction and from the beginning, and point +toward the south; but no one has a mother. + +After considerable difficulty we gained what we thought was our +cave, only to find that it was not, and then we realized that we +were lost in the labyrinthine mazes of the great cavern. We retraced +our steps and sought the point from which we had started, but only +succeeded in losing ourselves the more. Ajor was aghast--not so +much from fear of our predicament; but that she should have failed +in the functioning of that wonderful sense she possessed in common +with most other creatures Caspakian, which makes it possible for +them to move unerringly from place to place without compass or +guide. + +Hand in hand we crept along, searching for an opening into the outer +world, yet realizing that at each step we might be burrowing more +deeply into the heart of the great cliff, or circling futilely in +the vague wandering that could end only in death. And the darkness! +It was almost palpable, and utterly depressing. I had matches, and +in some of the more difficult places I struck one; but we couldn't +afford to waste them, and so we groped our way slowly along, doing +the best we could to keep to one general direction in the hope that +it would eventually lead us to an opening into the outer world. +When I struck matches, I noticed that the walls bore no paintings; +nor was there other sign that man had penetrated this far within +the cliff, nor any spoor of animals of other kinds. + +It would be difficult to guess at the time we spent wandering +through those black corridors, climbing steep ascents, feeling +our way along the edges of bottomless pits, never knowing at what +moment we might be plunged into some abyss and always haunted +by the ever-present terror of death by starvation and thirst. As +difficult as it was, I still realized that it might have been +infinitely worse had I had another companion than Ajor--courageous, +uncomplaining, loyal little Ajor! She was tired and hungry and +thirsty, and she must have been discouraged; but she never faltered +in her cheerfulness. I asked her if she was afraid, and she replied +that here the Wieroo could not get her, and that if she died of +hunger, she would at least die with me and she was quite content +that such should be her end. At the time I attributed her attitude +to something akin to a doglike devotion to a new master who had been +kind to her. I can take oath to the fact that I did not think it +was anything more. + +Whether we had been imprisoned in the cliff for a day or a week I +could not say; nor even now do I know. We became very tired and +hungry; the hours dragged; we slept at least twice, and then we +rose and stumbled on, always weaker and weaker. There were ages +during which the trend of the corridors was always upward. It was +heartbreaking work for people in the state of exhaustion in which +we then were, but we clung tenaciously to it. We stumbled and +fell; we sank through pure physical inability to retain our feet; +but always we managed to rise at last and go on. At first, wherever +it had been possible, we had walked hand in hand lest we become +separated, and later, when I saw that Ajor was weakening rapidly, +we went side by side, I supporting her with an arm about her waist. +I still retained the heavy burden of my armament; but with the +rifle slung to my back, my hands were free. When I too showed +indisputable evidences of exhaustion, Ajor suggested that I lay +aside my arms and ammunition; but I told her that as it would mean +certain death for me to traverse Caspak without them, I might as +well take the chance of dying here in the cave with them, for there +was the other chance that we might find our wayto liberty. + +There came a time when Ajor could no longer walk, and then it was +that I picked her up in my arms and carried her. She begged me +to leave her, saying that after I found an exit, I could come back +and get her; but she knew, and she knew that I knew, that if ever +I did leave her, I could never find her again. Yet she insisted. +Barely had I sufficient strength to take a score of steps at a time; +then I would have to sink down and rest for five to ten minutes. +I don't know what force urged me on and kept me going in the face +of an absolute conviction that my efforts were utterly futile. I +counted us already as good as dead; but still I dragged myself +along until the time came that I could no longer rise, but could +only crawl along a few inches at a time, dragging Ajor beside me. +Her sweet voice, now almost inaudible from weakness, implored me +to abandon her and save myself--she seemed to think only of me. Of +course I couldn't have left her there alone, no matter how much I +might have desired to do so; but the fact of the matter was that +I didn't desire to leave her. What I said to her then came very +simply and naturally to my lips. It couldn't very well have been +otherwise, I imagine, for with death so close, I doubt if people +are much inclined to heroics. "I would rather not get out at +all, Ajor," I said to her, "than to get out without you." We were +resting against a rocky wall, and Ajor was leaning against me, her +head on my breast. I could feel her press closer to me, and one +hand stroked my arm in a weak caress; but she didn't say anything, +nor were words necessary. + +After a few minutes' more rest, we started on again upon our utterly +hopeless way; but I soon realized that I was weakening rapidly, +and presently I was forced to admit that I was through. "It's no +use, Ajor," I said, "I've come as far as I can. It may be that +if I sleep, I can go on again after," but I knew that that was not +true, and that the end was near. "Yes, sleep," said Ajor. "We +will sleep together--forever." + +She crept close to me as I lay on the hard floor and pillowed +her head upon my arm. With the little strength which remained to +me, I drew her up until our lips touched, and, then I whispered: +"Good-bye!" I must have lost consciousness almost immediately, +for I recall nothing more until I suddenly awoke out of a troubled +sleep, during which I dreamed that I was drowning, to find the +cave lighted by what appeared to be diffused daylight, and a tiny +trickle of water running down the corridor and forming a puddle in +the little depression in which it chanced that Ajor and I lay. I +turned my eyes quickly upon Ajor, fearful for what the light might +disclose; but she still breathed, though very faintly. Then I +searched about for an explanation of the light, and soon discovered +that it came from about a bend in the corridor just ahead of us and +at the top of a steep incline; and instantly I realized that Ajor +and I had stumbled by night almost to the portal of salvation. Had +chance taken us a few yards further, up either of the corridors +which diverged from ours just ahead of us, we might have been +irrevocably lost; we might still be lost; but at least we could die +in the light of day, out of the horrid blackness of this terrible +cave. + +I tried to rise, and found that sleep had given me back a portion of +my strength; and then I tasted the water and was further refreshed. +I shook Ajor gently by the shoulder; but she did not open her eyes, +and then I gathered a few drops of water in my cupped palm and let +them trickle between her lips. This revived her so that she raised +her lids, and when she saw me, she smiled. + +"What happened?" she asked. "Where are we?" + +"We are at the end of the corridor," I replied, "and daylight is +coming in from the outside world just ahead. We are saved, Ajor!" + +She sat up then and looked about, and then, quite womanlike, she +burst into tears. It was the reaction, of course; and then too, +she was very weak. I took her in my arms and quieted her as best +I could, and finally, with my help, she got to her feet; for she, +as well as I, had found some slight recuperation in sleep. Together +we staggered upward toward the light, and at the first turn we +saw an opening a few yards ahead of us and a leaden sky beyond--a +leaden sky from which was falling a drizzling rain, the author of +our little, trickling stream which had given us drink when we were +most in need of it. + +The cave had been damp and cold; but as we crawled through the aperture, +the muggy warmth of the Caspakian air caressed and confronted us; +even the rain was warmer than the atmosphere of those dark corridors. +We had water now, and warmth, and I was sure that Caspak would +soon offer us meat or fruit; but as we came to where we could look +about, we saw that we were upon the summit of the cliffs, where +there seemed little reason to expect game. However, there were +trees, and among them we soon descried edible fruits with which we +broke our long fast. + + + + + +Chapter 4 + + + + +We spent two days upon the cliff-top, resting and recuperating. +There was some small game which gave us meat, and the little pools +of rainwater were sufficient to quench our thirst. The sun came +out a few hours after we emerged from the cave, and in its warmth +we soon cast off the gloom which our recent experiences had saddled +upon us. + +Upon the morning of the third day we set out to search for a path +down to the valley. Below us, to the north, we saw a large pool +lying at the foot of the cliffs, and in it we could discern the +women of the Band-lu lying in the shallow waters, while beyond and +close to the base of the mighty barrier-cliffs there was a large +party of Band-lu warriors going north to hunt. We had a splendid +view from our lofty cliff-top. Dimly, to the west, we could see the +farther shore of the inland sea, and southwest the large southern +island loomed distinctly before us. A little east of north was the +northern island, which Ajor, shuddering, whispered was the home of +the Wieroo--the land of Oo-oh. It lay at the far end of the lake +and was barely visible to us, being fully sixty miles away. + +From our elevation, and in a clearer atmosphere, it would have stood +out distinctly; but the air of Caspak is heavy with moisture, with +the result that distant objects are blurred and indistinct. Ajor +also told me that the mainland east of Oo-oh was her land--the land +of the Galu. She pointed out the cliffs at its southern boundary, +which mark the frontier, south of which lies the country of +Kro-lu--the archers. We now had but to pass through the balance +of the Band-lu territory and that of the Kro-lu to be within the +confines of her own land; but that meant traversing thirty-five +miles of hostile country filled with every imaginable terror, and +possibly many beyond the powers of imagination. I would certainly +have given a lot for my plane at that moment, for with it, twenty +minutes would have landed us within the confines of Ajor's country. + +We finally found a place where we could slip over the edge of the +cliff onto a narrow ledge which seemed to give evidence of being +something of a game-path to the valley, though it apparently had +not been used for some time. I lowered Ajor at the end of my rifle +and then slid over myself, and I am free to admit that my hair +stood on end during the process, for the drop was considerable and +the ledge appallingly narrow, with a frightful drop sheer below +down to the rocks at the base of the cliff; but with Ajor there to +catch and steady me, I made it all right, and then we set off down +the trail toward the valley. There were two or three more bad +places, but for the most part it was an easy descent, and we came +to the highest of the Band-lu caves without further trouble. Here +we went more slowly, lest we should be set upon by some member of +the tribe. + +We must have passed about half the Band-lu cave-levels before we +were accosted, and then a huge fellow stepped out in front of me, +barring our further progress. + +"Who are you?" he asked; and he recognized me and I him, for he +had been one of those who had led me back into the cave and bound +me the night that I had been captured. From me his gaze went +to Ajor. He was a fine-looking man with clear, intelligent eyes, +a good forehead and superb physique--by far the highest type of +Caspakian I had yet seen, barring Ajor, of course. + +"You are a true Galu," he said to Ajor, "but this man is of +a different mold. He has the face of a Galu, but his weapons and +the strange skins he wears upon his body are not of the Galus nor +of Caspak. Who is he?" + +"He is Tom," replied Ajor succinctly. + +"There is no such people," asserted the Band-lu quite truthfully, +toying with his spear in a most suggestive manner. + +"My name is Tom," I explained, "and I am from a country beyond +Caspak." I thought it best to propitiate him if possible, because +of the necessity of conserving ammunition as well as to avoid the +loud alarm of a shot which might bring other Band-lu warriors upon +us. "I am from America, a land of which you never heard, and I am +seeking others of my countrymen who are in Caspak and from whom I +am lost. I have no quarrel with you or your people. Let us go our +way in peace." + +"You are going there?" he asked, and pointed toward the north. + +"I am," I replied. + +He was silent for several minutes, apparently weighing some thought +in his mind. At last he spoke. "What is that?" he asked. "And +what is that?" He pointed first at my rifle and then to my pistol. + +"They are weapons," I replied, "weapons which kill at a great +distance." I pointed to the women in the pool beneath us. "With +this," I said, tapping my pistol, "I could kill as many of those +women as I cared to, without moving a step from where we now stand." + +He looked his incredulity, but I went on. "And with this"--I +weighed my rifle at the balance in the palm of my right hand--"I +could slay one of those distant warriors." And I waved my left +hand toward the tiny figures of the hunters far to the north. + +The fellow laughed. "Do it," he cried derisively, "and then it +may be that I shall believe the balance of your strange story." + +"But I do not wish to kill any of them," I replied. "Why should +I?" + +"Why not?" he insisted. "They would have killed you when they +had you prisoner. They would kill you now if they could get their +hands on you, and they would eat you into the bargain. But I know +why you do not try it--it is because you have spoken lies; your +weapon will not kill at a great distance. It is only a queerly +wrought club. For all I know, you are nothing more than a lowly +Bo-lu." + +"Why should you wish me to kill your own people?" I asked. + +"They are no longer my people," he replied proudly. "Last night, +in the very middle of the night, the call came to me. Like that +it came into my head"--and he struck his hands together smartly +once--"that I had risen. I have been waiting for it and expecting +it for a long time; today I am a Krolu. Today I go into the +coslupak" (unpeopled country, or literally, no man's land) "between +the Band-lu and the Kro-lu, and there I fashion my bow and my arrows +and my shield; there I hunt the red deer for the leathern jerkin +which is the badge of my new estate. When these things are done, +I can go to the chief of the Kro-lu, and he dare not refuse me. +That is why you may kill those low Band-lu if you wish to live, +for I am in a hurry. + +"But why do you wish to kill me?" I asked. + +He looked puzzled and finally gave it up. "I do not know," he +admitted. "It is the way in Caspak. If we do not kill, we shall +be killed, therefore it is wise to kill first whomever does not +belong to one's own people. This morning I hid in my cave till the +others were gone upon the hunt, for I knew that they would know at +once that I had become a Kro-lu and would kill me. They will kill +me if they find me in the coslupak; so will the Kro-lu if they +come upon me before I have won my Kro-lu weapons and jerkin. You +would kill me if you could, and that is the reason I know that +you speak lies when you say that your weapons will kill at a great +distance. Would they, you would long since have killed me. Come! +I have no more time to waste in words. I will spare the woman and +take her with me to the Kro-lu, for she is comely." And with that +he advanced upon me with raised spear. + +My rifle was at my hip at the ready. He was so close that I did +not need to raise it to my shoulder, having but to pull the trigger +to send him into Kingdom Come whenever I chose; but yet I hesitated. +It was difficult to bring myself to take a human life. I could feel +no enmity toward this savage barbarian who acted almost as wholly +upon instinct as might a wild beast, and to the last moment I was +determined to seek some way to avoid what now seemed inevitable. +Ajor stood at my shoulder, her knife ready in her hand and a sneer +on her lips at his suggestion that he would take her with him. + +Just as I thought I should have to fire, a chorus of screams broke +from the women beneath us. I saw the man halt and glance downward, +and following his example my eyes took in the panic and its cause. +The women had, evidently, been quitting the pool and slowly returning +toward the caves, when they were confronted by a monstrous cave-lion +which stood directly between them and their cliffs in the center of +the narrow path that led down to the pool among the tumbled rocks. +Screaming, the women were rushing madly back to the pool. + +"It will do them no good," remarked the man, a trace of excitement +in his voice. "It will do them no good, for the lion will wait until +they come out and take as many as he can carry away; and there is +one there," he added, a trace of sadness in his tone, "whom I hoped +would soon follow me to the Kro-lu. Together have we come up from +the beginning." He raised his spear above his head and poised it +ready to hurl downward at the lion. "She is nearest to him," he +muttered. "He will get her and she will never come to me among +the Kro-lu, or ever thereafter. It is useless! No warrior lives +who could hurl a weapon so great a distance." + +But even as he spoke, I was leveling my rifle upon the great brute +below; and as he ceased speaking, I squeezed the trigger. My bullet +must have struck to a hair the point at which I had aimed, for it +smashed the brute's spine back of his shoulders and tore on through +his heart, dropping him dead in his tracks. For a moment the women +were as terrified by the report of the rifle as they had been by +the menace of the lion; but when they saw that the loud noise had +evidently destroyed their enemy, they came creeping cautiously back +to examine the carcass. + +The man, toward whom I had immediately turned after firing, lest +he should pursue his threatened attack, stood staring at me in +amazement and admiration. + +"Why," he asked, "if you could do that, did you not kill me long +before?" + +"I told you," I replied, "that I had no quarrel with you. I do +not care to kill men with whom I have no quarrel." + +But he could not seem to get the idea through his head. "I +can believe now that you are not of Caspak," he admitted, "for no +Caspakian would have permitted such an opportunity to escape him." +This, however, I found later to be an exaggeration, as the tribes +of the west coast and even the Kro-lu of the east coast are far +less bloodthirsty than he would have had me believe. "And your +weapon!" he continued. "You spoke true words when I thought you +spoke lies." And then, suddenly: "Let us be friends!" + +I turned to Ajor. "Can I trust him?" I asked. + +"Yes," she replied. "Why not? Has he not asked to be friends?" + +I was not at the time well enough acquainted with Caspakian ways +to know that truthfulness and loyalty are two of the strongest +characteristics of these primitive people. They are not sufficiently +cultured to have become adept in hypocrisy, treason and dissimulation. +There are, of course, a few exceptions. + +"We can go north together," continued the warrior. "I will fight +for you, and you can fight for me. Until death will I serve you, +for you have saved So-al, whom I had given up as dead." He threw +down his spear and covered both his eyes with the palms of his two +hands. I looked inquiringly toward Ajor, who explained as best she +could that this was the form of the Caspakian oath of allegiance. +"You need never fear him after this," she concluded. + +"What should I do?" I asked. + +"Take his hands down from before his eyes and return his spear to +him," she explained. + +I did as she bade, and the man seemed very pleased. I then asked +what I should have done had I not wished to accept his friendship. +They told me that had I walked away, the moment that I was out +of sight of the warrior we would have become deadly enemies again. +"But I could so easily have killed him as he stood there defenseless!" +I exclaimed. + +"Yes," replied the warrior, "but no man with good sense blinds his +eyes before one whom he does not trust." + +It was rather a decent compliment, and it taught me just how much +I might rely on the loyalty of my new friend. I was glad to have +him with us, for he knew the country and was evidently a fearless +warrior. I wished that I might have recruited a battalion like +him. + +As the women were now approaching the cliffs, Tomar the warrior +suggested that we make our way to the valley before they could +intercept us, as they might attempt to detain us and were almost +certain to set upon Ajor. So we hastened down the narrow path, +reaching the foot of the cliffs but a short distance ahead of the +women. They called after us to stop; but we kept on at a rapid +walk, not wishing to have any trouble with them, which could only +result in the death of some of them. + +We had proceeded about a mile when we heard some one behind us +calling To-mar by name, and when we stopped and looked around, we +saw a woman running rapidly toward us. As she approached nearer +I could see that she was a very comely creature, and like all her +sex that I had seen in Caspak, apparently young. + +"It is So-al!" exclaimed To-mar. "Is she mad that she follows me +thus?" + +In another moment the young woman stopped, panting, before us. +She paid not the slightest attention to Ajor or me; but devouring +To-mar with her sparkling eyes, she cried: "I have risen! I have +risen!" + +"So-al!" was all that the man could say. + +"Yes," she went on, "the call came to me just before I quit the +pool; but I did not know that it had come to you. I can see it in +your eyes, To-mar, my To-mar! We shall go on together!" And she +threw herself into his arms. + +It was a very affecting sight, for it was evident that these two +had been mates for a long time and that they had each thought that +they were about to be separated by that strange law of evolution +which holds good in Caspak and which was slowly unfolding before +my incredulous mind. I did not then comprehend even a tithe of +the wondrous process, which goes on eternally within the confines +of Caprona's barrier cliffs nor am I any too sure that I do even +now. + +To-mar explained to So-al that it was I who had killed the cave-lion +and saved her life, and that Ajor was my woman and thus entitled +to the same loyalty which was my due. + +At first Ajor and So-al were like a couple of stranger cats on a +back fence but soon they began to accept each other under something +of an armed truce, and later became fast friends. So-al was a +mighty fine-looking girl, built like a tigress as to strength and +sinuosity, but withal sweet and womanly. Ajor and I came to be +very fond of her, and she was, I think, equally fond of us. To-mar +was very much of a man--a savage, if you will, but none the less +a man. + +Finding that traveling in company with To-mar made our journey +both easier and safer, Ajor and I did not continue on our way alone +while the novitiates delayed their approach to the Kro-lu country +in order that they might properly fit themselves in the matter +of arms and apparel, but remained with them. Thus we became well +acquainted--to such an extent that we looked forward with regret +to the day when they took their places among their new comrades +and we should be forced to continue upon our way alone. It was a +matter of much concern to To-mar that the Krolu would undoubtedly +not receive Ajor and me in a friendly manner, and that consequently +we should have to avoid these people. + +It would have been very helpful to us could we have made friends +with them, as their country abutted directly upon that of the +Galus. Their friendship would have meant that Ajor's dangers were +practically passed, and that I had accomplished fully one-half of +my long journey. In view of what I had passed through, I often +wondered what chance I had to complete that journey in search of +my friends. The further south I should travel on the west side of +the island, the more frightful would the dangers become as I neared +the stamping-grounds of the more hideous reptilia and the haunts +of the Alus and the Ho-lu, all of which were at the southern half +of the island; and then if I should not find the members of my +party, what was to become of me? I could not live for long in any +portion of Caspak with which I was familiar; the moment my ammunition +was exhausted, I should be as good as dead. + +There was a chance that the Galus would receive me; but even Ajor +could not say definitely whether they would or not, and even provided +that they would, could I retrace my steps from the beginning, after +failing to find my own people, and return to the far northern land +of Galus? I doubted it. However, I was learning from Ajor, who +was more or less of a fatalist, a philosophy which was as necessary +in Caspak to peace of mind as is faith to the devout Christian of +the outer world. + + + + + +Chapter 5 + + + + +We were sitting before a little fire inside a safe grotto one +night shortly after we had quit the cliff-dwellings of the Band-lu, +when So-al raised a question which it had never occurred to me to +propound to Ajor. She asked her why she had left her own people +and how she had come so far south as the country of the Alus, where +I had found her. + +At first Ajor hesitated to explain; but at last she consented, +and for the first time I heard the complete story of her origin +and experiences. For my benefit she entered into greater detail +of explanation than would have been necessary had I been a native +Caspakian. + +"I am a cos-ata-lo," commenced Ajor, and then she turned toward +me. "A cos-ata-lo, my Tom, is a woman" (lo) "who did not come from +an egg and thus on up from the beginning." (Cor sva jo.) "I was +a babe at my mother's breast. Only among the Galus are such, and +then but infrequently. The Wieroo get most of us; but my mother +hid me until I had attained such size that the Wieroo could not +readily distinguish me from one who had come up from the beginning. +I knew both my mother and my father, as only such as I may. My +father is high chief among the Galus. His name is Jor, and both he +and my mother came up from the beginning; but one of them, probably +my mother, had completed the seven cycles" (approximately seven +hundred years), "with the result that their offspring might be +cos-ata-lo, or born as are all the children of your race, my Tom, +as you tell me is the fact. I was therefore apart from my fellows +in that my children would probably be as I, of a higher state of +evolution, and so I was sought by the men of my people; but none +of them appealed to me. I cared for none. The most persistent +was Du-seen, a huge warrior of whom my father stood in considerable +fear, since it was quite possible that Du-seen could wrest from +him his chieftainship of the Galus. He has a large following of +the newer Galus, those most recently come up from the Kro-lu, and +as this class is usually much more powerful numerically than the +older Galus, and as Du-seen's ambition knows no bounds, we have +for a long time been expecting him to find some excuse for a break +with Jor the High Chief, my father. + +"A further complication lay in the fact that Duseen wanted me, while +I would have none of him, and then came evidence to my father's +ears that he was in league with the Wieroo; a hunter, returning +late at night, came trembling to my father, saying that he had +seen Du-seen talking with a Wieroo in a lonely spot far from the +village, and that plainly he had heard the words: `If you will help +me, I will help you--I will deliver into your hands all cos-ata-lo +among the Galus, now and hereafter; but for that service you must +slay Jor the High Chief and bring terror and confusion to his +followers.' + +"Now, when my father heard this, he was angry; but he was also +afraid--afraid for me, who am cosata-lo. He called me to him and +told me what he had heard, pointing out two ways in which we might +frustrate Du-seen. The first was that I go to Du-seen as his +mate, after which he would be loath to give me into the hands of +the Wieroo or to further abide by the wicked compact he had made--a +compact which would doom his own offspring, who would doubtless be +as am I, their mother. The alternative was flight until Du-seen +should have been overcome and punished. I chose the latter and +fled toward the south. Beyond the confines of the Galu country is +little danger from the Wieroo, who seek ordinarily only Galus of +the highest orders. There are two excellent reasons for this: One +is that from the beginning of time jealousy had existed between +the Wieroo and the Galus as to which would eventually dominate +the world. It seems generally conceded that that race which first +reaches a point of evolution which permits them to produce young +of their own species and of both sexes must dominate all other +creatures. The Wieroo first began to produce their own kind--after +which evolution from Galu to Wieroo ceased gradually until now it +is unknown; but the Wieroo produce only males--which is why they +steal our female young, and by stealing cos-ata-lo they increase +their own chances of eventually reproducing both sexes and at the +same time lessen ours. Already the Galus produce both male and +female; but so carefully do the Wieroo watch us that few of the +males ever grow to manhood, while even fewer are the females that +are not stolen away. It is indeed a strange condition, for while +our greatest enemies hate and fear us, they dare not exterminate +us, knowing that they too would become extinct but for us. + +"Ah, but could we once get a start, I am sure that when all were +true cos-ata-lo there would have been evolved at last the true +dominant race before which all the world would be forced to bow." + +Ajor always spoke of the world as though nothing existed beyond +Caspak. She could not seem to grasp the truth of my origin or +the fact that there were countless other peoples outside her stern +barrier-cliffs. She apparently felt that I came from an entirely +different world. Where it was and how I came to Caspak from it +were matters quite beyond her with which she refused to trouble +her pretty head. + +"Well," she continued, "and so I ran away to hide, intending to pass +the cliffs to the south of Galu and find a retreat in the Kro-lu +country. It would be dangerous, but there seemed no other way. + +"The third night I took refuge in a large cave in the cliffs at the +edge of my own country; upon the following day I would cross over +into the Kro-lu country, where I felt that I should be reasonably +safe from the Wieroo, though menaced by countless other dangers. +However, to a cos-ata-lo any fate is preferable to that of falling +into the clutches of the frightful Wieroo, from whose land none +returns. + +"I had been sleeping peacefully for several hours when I was +awakened by a slight noise within the cavern. The moon was shining +brightly, illumining the entrance, against which I saw silhouetted +the dread figure of a Wieroo. There was no escape. The cave was +shallow, the entrance narrow. I lay very still, hoping against +hope, that the creature had but paused here to rest and might soon +depart without discovering me; yet all the while I knew that he +came seeking me. + +"I waited, scarce breathing, watching the thing creep stealthily +toward me, its great eyes luminous in the darkness of the cave's +interior, and at last I knew that those eyes were directed upon me, +for the Wieroo can see in the darkness better than even the lion +or the tiger. But a few feet separated us when I sprang to my feet +and dashed madly toward my menacer in a vain effort to dodge past +him and reach the outside world. It was madness of course, for +even had I succeeded temporarily, the Wieroo would have but followed +and swooped down upon me from above. As it was, he reached forth +and seized me, and though I struggled, he overpowered me. In the +duel his long, white robe was nearly torn from him, and he became +very angry, so that he trembled and beat his wings together in his +rage. + +"He asked me my name; but I would not answer him, and that angered +him still more. At last he dragged me to the entrance of the cave, +lifted me in his arms, spread his great wings and leaping into +the air, flapped dismally through the night. I saw the moonlit +landscape sliding away beneath me, and then we were out above the +sea and on our way to Oo-oh, the country of the Wieroo. + +"The dim outlines of Oo-oh were unfolding below us when there +came from above a loud whirring of giant wings. The Wieroo and I +glanced up simultaneously, to see a pair of huge jo-oos" (flying +reptiles--pterodactyls) "swooping down upon us. The Wieroo +wheeled and dropped almost to sea-level, and then raced southward +in an effort to outdistance our pursuers. The great creatures, +notwithstanding their enormous weight, are swift on their wings; +but the Wieroo are swifter. Even with my added weight, the creature +that bore me maintained his lead, though he could not increase it. +Faster than the fastest wind we raced through the night, southward +along the coast. Sometimes we rose to great heights, where the +air was chill and the world below but a blur of dim outlines; but +always the jo-oos stuck behind us. + +"I knew that we had covered a great distance, for the rush of +the wind by my face attested the speed of our progress, but I had +no idea where we were when at last I realized that the Wieroo was +weakening. One of the jo-oos gained on us and succeeded in heading +us, so that my captor had to turn in toward the coast. Further +and further they forced him to the left; lower and lower he sank. +More labored was his breathing, and weaker the stroke of his once +powerful wings. We were not ten feet above the ground when they +overtook us, and at the edge of a forest. One of them seized the +Wieroo by his right wing, and in an effort to free himself, he +loosed his grasp upon me, dropping me to earth. Like a frightened +ecca I leaped to my feet and raced for the sheltering sanctuary of +the forest, where I knew neither could follow or seize me. Then I +turned and looked back to see two great reptiles tear my abductor +asunder and devour him on the spot. + +"I was saved; yet I felt that I was lost. How far I was from the +country of the Galus I could not guess; nor did it seem probable +that I ever could make my way in safety to my native land. + +"Day was breaking; soon the carnivora would stalk forth for their +first kill; I was armed only with my knife. About me was a strange +landscape--the flowers, the trees, the grasses, even, were different +from those of my northern world, and presently there appeared before +me a creature fully as hideous as the Wieroo--a hairy manthing +that barely walked erect. I shuddered, and then I fled. Through +the hideous dangers that my forebears had endured in the earlier +stages of their human evolution I fled; and always pursuing was +the hairy monster that had discovered me. Later he was joined by +others of his kind. They were the speechless men, the Alus, from +whom you rescued me, my Tom. From then on, you know the story of +my adventures, and from the first, I would endure them all again +because they led me to you!" + +It was very nice of her to say that, and I appreciated it. I felt +that she was a mighty nice little girl whose friendship anyone +might be glad to have; but I wished that when she touched me, those +peculiar thrills would not run through me. It was most discomforting, +because it reminded me of love; and I knew that I never could love +this half-baked little barbarian. I was very much interested in +her account of the Wieroo, which up to this time I had considered +a purely mythological creature; but Ajor shuddered so at even the +veriest mention of the name that I was loath to press the subject +upon her, and so the Wieroo still remained a mystery to me. + +While the Wieroo interested me greatly, I had little time to think +about them, as our waking hours were filled with the necessities +of existence--the constant battle for survival which is the chief +occupation of Caspakians. To-mar and So-al were now about fitted +for their advent into Kro-lu society and must therefore leave +us, as we could not accompany them without incurring great danger +ourselves and running the chance of endangering them; but each +swore to be always our friend and assured us that should we need +their aid at any time we had but to ask it; nor could I doubt their +sincerity, since we had been so instrumental in bringing them safely +upon their journey toward the Kro-lu village. + +This was our last day together. In the afternoon we should separate, +To-mar and So-al going directly to the Kro-lu village, while Ajor +and I made a detour to avoid a conflict with the archers. The +former both showed evidence of nervous apprehension as the time +approached for them to make their entry into the village of their +new people, and yet both were very proud and happy. They told us +that they would be well received as additions to a tribe always +are welcomed, and the more so as the distance from the beginning +increased, the higher tribes or races being far weaker numerically +than the lower. The southern end of the island fairly swarms with +the Ho-lu, or apes; next above these are the Alus, who are slightly +fewer in number than the Ho-lu; and again there are fewer Bolu than +Alus, and fewer Sto-lu than Bo-lu. Thus it goes until the Kro-lu +are fewer in number than any of the others; and here the law reverses, +for the Galus outnumber the Kro-lu. As Ajor explained it to me, +the reason for this is that as evolution practically ceases with +the Galus, there is no less among them on this score, for even the +cos-ata-lo are still considered Galus and remain with them. And +Galus come up both from the west and east coasts. There are, too, +fewer carnivorous reptiles at the north end of the island, and not +so many of the great and ferocious members of the cat family as +take their hideous toll of life among the races further south. + +By now I was obtaining some idea of the Caspakian scheme of +evolution, which partly accounted for the lack of young among the +races I had so far seen. Coming up from the beginning, the Caspakian +passes, during a single existence, through the various stages of +evolution, or at least many of them, through which the human race +has passed during the countless ages since life first stirred upon +a new world; but the question which continued to puzzle me was: +What creates life at the beginning, cor sva jo? + +I had noticed that as we traveled northward from the Alus' country +the land had gradually risen until we were now several hundred feet +above the level of the inland sea. Ajor told me that the Galus +country was still higher and considerably colder, which accounted +for the scarcity of reptiles. The change in form and kinds of the +lower animals was even more marked than the evolutionary stages +of man. The diminutive ecca, or small horse, became a rough-coated +and sturdy little pony in the Kro-lu country. I saw a greater +number of small lions and tigers, though many of the huge ones still +persisted, while the woolly mammoth was more in evidence, as were +several varieties of the Labyrinthadonta. These creatures, from +which God save me, I should have expected to find further south; +but for some unaccountable reason they gain their greatest bulk in +the Kro-lu and Galu countries, though fortunately they are rare. +I rather imagine that they are a very early life which is rapidly +nearing extinction in Caspak, though wherever they are found, they +constitute a menace to all forms of life. + +It was mid-afternoon when To-mar and So-al bade us good-bye. We +were not far from Kro-lu village; in fact, we had approached it +much closer than we had intended, and now Ajor and I were to make +a detour toward the sea while our companions went directly in search +of the Kro-lu chief. + +Ajor and I had gone perhaps a mile or two and were just about to +emerge from a dense wood when I saw that ahead of us which caused +me to draw back into concealment, at the same time pushing Ajor +behind me. What I saw was a party of Band-lu warriors--large, +fierce-appearing men. From the direction of their march I saw that +they were returning to their caves, and that if we remained where +we were, they would pass without discovering us. + +Presently Ajor nudged me. "They have a prisoner," she whispered. +"He is a Kro-lu." + +And then I saw him, the first fully developed Krolu I had seen. He +was a fine-looking savage, tall and straight with a regal carriage. +To-mar was a handsome fellow; but this Kro-lu showed plainly in +his every physical attribute a higher plane of evolution. While +To-mar was just entering the Kro-lu sphere, this man, it seemed +to me, must be close indeed to the next stage of his development, +which would see him an envied Galu. + +"They will kill him?" I whispered to Ajor. + +"The dance of death," she replied, and I shuddered, so recently had +I escaped the same fate. It seemed cruel that one who must have +passed safely up through all the frightful stages of human evolution +within Caspak, should die at the very foot of his goal. I raised +my rifle to my shoulder and took careful aim at one of the Band-lu. +If I hit him, I would hit two, for another was directly behind the +first. + +Ajor touched my arm. "What would you do?" she asked. "They are +all our enemies." + +"I am going to save him from the dance of death," I replied, "enemy +or no enemy," and I squeezed the trigger. At the report, the two +Band-lu lunged forward upon their faces. I handed my rifle to Ajor, +and drawing my pistol, stepped out in full view of the startled +party. The Band-lu did not run away as had some of the lower orders +of Caspakians at the sound of the rifle. Instead, the moment they +saw me, they let out a series of demoniac war-cries, and raising +their spears above their heads, charged me. + +The Kro-lu stood silent and statuesque, watching the proceedings. +He made no attempt to escape, though his feet were not bound and +none of the warriors remained to guard him. There were ten of +the Band-lu coming for me. I dropped three of them with my pistol +as rapidly as a man might count by three, and then my rifle spoke +close to my left shoulder, and another of them stumbled and rolled +over and over upon the ground. Plucky little Ajor! She had never +fired a shot before in all her life, though I had taught her to +sight and aim and how to squeeze the trigger instead of pulling it. +She had practiced these new accomplishments often, but little had +I thought they would make a marksman of her so quickly. + +With six of their fellows put out of the fight so easily, the +remaining six sought cover behind some low bushes and commenced +a council of war. I wished that they would go away, as I had no +ammunition to waste, and I was fearful that should they institute +another charge, some of them would reach us, for they were already +quite close. Suddenly one of them rose and launched his spear. It +was the most marvelous exhibition of speed I have ever witnessed. +It seemed to me that he had scarce gained an upright position when +the weapon was half-way upon its journey, speeding like an arrow +toward Ajor. And then it was, with that little life in danger, +that I made the best shot I have ever made in my life! I took +no conscious aim; it was as though my subconscious mind, impelled +by a stronger power even than that of self-preservation, directed +my hand. Ajor was in danger! Simultaneously with the thought my +pistol flew to position, a streak of incandescent powder marked +the path of the bullet from its muzzle; and the spear, its point +shattered, was deflected from its path. With a howl of dismay the +six Band-lu rose from their shelter and raced away toward the south. + +I turned toward Ajor. She was very white and wide-eyed, for the +clutching fingers of death had all but seized her; but a little +smile came to her lips and an expression of great pride to her eyes. +"My Tom!" she said, and took my hand in hers. That was all--"My +Tom!" and a pressure of the hand. Her Tom! Something stirred within +my bosom. Was it exaltation or was it consternation? Impossible! +I turned away almost brusquely. + +"Come!" I said, and strode off toward the Kro-lu prisoner. + +The Kro-lu stood watching us with stolid indifference. I presume +that he expected to be killed; but if he did, he showed no outward +sign of fear. His eyes, indicating his greatest interest, were +fixed upon my pistol or the rifle which Ajor still carried. I cut +his bonds with my knife. As I did so, an expression of surprise +tinged and animated the haughty reserve of his countenance. He +eyed me quizzically. + +"What are you going to do with me?" he asked. + +"You are free," I replied. "Go home, if you wish." + +"Why don't you kill me?" he inquired. "I am defenseless." + +"Why should I kill you? I have risked my life and that of this young +lady to save your life. Why, therefore should I now take it?" Of +course, I didn't say "young lady" as there is no Caspakian equivalent +for that term; but I have to allow myself considerable latitude in +the translation of Caspakian conversations. To speak always of a +beautiful young girl as a "she" may be literal; but it seems far +from gallant. + +The Kro-lu concentrated his steady, level gaze upon me for at least +a full minute. Then he spoke again. + +"Who are you, man of strange skins?" he asked. "Your she is Galu; +but you are neither Galu nor Krolu nor Band-lu, nor any other sort +of man which I have seen before. Tell me from whence comes so +mighty a warrior and so generous a foe." + +"It is a long story," I replied, "but suffice it to say that I am +not of Caspak. I am a stranger here, and--let this sink in--I am +not a foe. I have no wish to be an enemy of any man in Caspak, +with the possible exception of the Galu warrior Du-seen." + +"Du-seen!" he exclaimed. "You are an enemy of Du-seen? And why?" + +"Because he would harm Ajor," I replied. "You know him?" + +"He cannot know him," said Ajor. "Du-seen rose from the Kro-lu +long ago, taking a new name, as all do when they enter a new sphere. +He cannot know him, as there is no intercourse between the Kro-lu +and the Galu." + +The warrior smiled. "Du-seen rose not so long ago," he said, +"that I do not recall him well, and recently he has taken it upon +himself to abrogate the ancient laws of Caspak; he had had intercourse +with the Kro-lu. Du-seen would be chief of the Galus, and he has +come to the Kro-lu for help." + +Ajor was aghast. The thing was incredible. Never had Kro-lu and +Galu had friendly relations; by the savage laws of Caspak they were +deadly enemies, for only so can the several races maintain their +individuality. + +"Will the Kro-lu join him?" asked Ajor. "Will they invade the +country of Jor my father?" + +"The younger Kro-lu favor the plan," replied the warrior, "since +they believe they will thus become Galus immediately. They hope +to span the long years of change through which they must pass in +the ordinary course of events and at a single stride become Galus. +We of the older Kro-lu tell them that though they occupy the land +of the Galu and wear the skins and ornaments of the golden people, +still they will not be Galus till the time arrives that they are +ripe to rise. We also tell them that even then they will never +become a true Galu race, since there will still be those among +them who can never rise. It is all right to raid the Galu country +occasionally for plunder, as our people do; but to attempt to conquer +it and hold it is madness. For my part, I have been content to +wait until the call came to me. I feel that it cannot now be long." + +"What is your name?" asked Ajor. + +"Chal-az, " replied the man. + +"You are chief of the Kro-lu?" Ajor continued. + +"No, it is Al-tan who is chief of the Kro-lu of the east," answered +Chal-az. + +"And he is against this plan to invade my father's country?" + +"Unfortunately he is rather in favor of it," replied the man, "since +he has about come to the conclusion that he is batu. He has been +chief ever since, before I came up from the Band-lu, and I can see +no change in him in all those years. In fact, he still appears +to be more Band-lu than Kro-lu. However, he is a good chief and a +mighty warrior, and if Du-seen persuades him to his cause, the Galus +may find themselves under a Kro-lu chieftain before long--Du-seen +as well as the others, for Al-tan would never consent to occupy a +subordinate position, and once he plants a victorious foot in Galu, +he will not withdraw it without a struggle." + +I asked them what batu meant, as I had not before heard the word. +Literally translated, it is equivalent to through, finished, +done-for, as applied to an individual's evolutionary progress in +Caspak, and with this information was developed the interesting +fact that not every individual is capable of rising through every +stage to that of Galu. Some never progress beyond the Alu stage; +others stop as Bo-lu, as Sto-lu, as Bandlu or as Kro-lu. The +Ho-lu of the first generation may rise to become Alus; the Alus +of the second generation may become Bo-lu, while it requires three +generations of Bo-lu to become Band-lu, and so on until Kro-lu's +parent on one side must be of the sixth generation. + +It was not entirely plain to me even with this explanation, since +I couldn't understand how there could be different generations of +peoples who apparently had no offspring. Yet I was commencing to +get a slight glimmer of the strange laws which govern propagation +and evolution in this weird land. Already I knew that the warm +pools which always lie close to every tribal abiding-place were +closely linked with the Caspakian scheme of evolution, and that the +daily immersion of the females in the greenish slimy water was in +response to some natural law, since neither pleasure nor cleanliness +could be derived from what seemed almost a religious rite. Yet I +was still at sea; nor, seemingly, could Ajor enlighten me, since +she was compelled to use words which I could not understand and +which it was impossible for her to explain the meanings of. + +As we stood talking, we were suddenly startled by a commotion in +the bushes and among the boles of the trees surrounding us, and +simultaneously a hundred Kro-lu warriors appeared in a rough circle +about us. They greeted Chal-az with a volley of questions as they +approached slowly from all sides, their heavy bows fitted with +long, sharp arrows. Upon Ajor and me they looked with covetousness +in the one instance and suspicion in the other; but after they +had heard Chal-az's story, their attitude was more friendly. A +huge savage did all the talking. He was a mountain of a man, yet +perfectly proportioned. + +"This is Al-tan the chief," said Chal-az by way of introduction. Then +he told something of my story, and Al-tan asked me many questions +of the land from which I came. The warriors crowded around close +to hear my replies, and there were many expressions of incredulity +as I spoke of what was to them another world, of the yacht which +had brought me over vast waters, and of the plane that had borne +me Jo-oo-like over the summit of the barrier-cliffs. It was the +mention of the hydroaeroplane which precipitated the first outspoken +skepticism, and then Ajor came to my defense. + +"I saw it with my own eyes!" she exclaimed. "I saw him flying +through the air in battle with a Jo-oo. The Alus were chasing me, +and they saw and ran away." + +"Whose is this she?" demanded Al-tan suddenly, his eyes fixed +fiercely upon Ajor. + +For a moment there was silence. Ajor looked up at me, a hurt and +questioning expression on her face. "Whose she is this?" repeated +Al-tan. + +"She is mine," I replied, though what force it was that impelled me +to say it I could not have told; but an instant later I was glad +that I had spoken the words, for the reward of Ajor's proud and +happy face was reward indeed. + +Al-tan eyed her for several minutes and then turned to me. "Can +you keep her?" he asked, just the tinge of a sneer upon his face. + +I laid my palm upon the grip of my pistol and answered that I could. +He saw the move, glanced at the butt of the automatic where it +protruded from its holster, and smiled. Then he turned and raising +his great bow, fitted an arrow and drew the shaft far back. His +warriors, supercilious smiles upon their faces, stood silently +watching him. His bow was the longest and the heaviest among them +all. A mighty man indeed must he be to bend it; yet Al-tan drew +the shaft back until the stone point touched his left forefinger, +and he did it with consummate ease. Then he raised the shaft to the +level of his right eye, held it there for an instant and released +it. When the arrow stopped, half its length protruded from the +opposite side of a six-inch tree fifty feet away. Al-tan and his +warriors turned toward me with expressions of immense satisfaction +upon their faces, and then, apparently for Ajor's benefit, the +chieftain swaggered to and fro a couple of times, swinging his +great arms and his bulky shoulders for all the world like a drunken +prize-fighter at a beach dancehall. + +I saw that some reply was necessary, and so in a single motion, +I drew my gun, dropped it on the still quivering arrow and pulled +the trigger. At the sound of the report, the Kro-lu leaped back +and raised their weapons; but as I was smiling, they took heart +and lowered them again, following my eyes to the tree; the shaft +of their chief was gone, and through the bole was a little round +hole marking the path of my bullet. It was a good shot if I do +say it myself, "as shouldn't" but necessity must have guided that +bullet; I simply had to make a good shot, that I might immediately +establish my position among those savage and warlike Caspakians of the +sixth sphere. That it had its effect was immediately noticeable, +but I am none too sure that it helped my cause with Al-tan. +Whereas he might have condescended to tolerate me as a harmless +and interesting curiosity, he now, by the change in his expression, +appeared to consider me in a new and unfavorable light. Nor can I +wonder, knowing this type as I did, for had I not made him ridiculous +in the eyes of his warriors, beating him at his own game? What +king, savage or civilized, could condone such impudence? Seeing his +black scowls, I deemed it expedient, especially on Ajor's account, +to terminate the interview and continue upon our way; but when +I would have done so, Al-tan detained us with a gesture, and his +warriors pressed around us. + +"What is the meaning of this?" I demanded, and before Al-tan could +reply, Chal-az raised his voice in our behalf. + +"Is this the gratitude of a Kro-lu chieftain, Al-tan," he asked, +"to one who has served you by saving one of your warriors from the +enemy--saving him from the death dance of the Band-lu?" + +Al-tan was silent for a moment, and then his brow cleared, and the +faint imitation of a pleasant expression struggled for existence +as he said: "The stranger will not be harmed. I wished only to +detain him that he may be feasted tonight in the village of Al-tan +the Kro-lu. In the morning he may go his way. Al-tan will not +hinder him." + +I was not entirely reassured; but I wanted to see the interior +of the Kro-lu village, and anyway I knew that if Al-tan intended +treachery I would be no more in his power in the morning than I now +was--in fact, during the night I might find opportunity to escape +with Ajor, while at the instant neither of us could hope to escape +unscathed from the encircling warriors. Therefore, in order to +disarm him of any thought that I might entertain suspicion as to +his sincerity, I promptly and courteously accepted his invitation. +His satisfaction was evident, and as we set off toward his village, +he walked beside me, asking many questions as to the country +from which I came, its peoples and their customs. He seemed much +mystified by the fact that we could walk abroad by day or night +without fear of being devoured by wild beasts or savage reptiles, +and when I told him of the great armies which we maintained, his +simple mind could not grasp the fact that they existed solely for +the slaughtering of human beings. + +"I am glad," he said, "that I do not dwell in your country among +such savage peoples. Here, in Caspak, men fight with men when they +meet--men of different races--but their weapons are first for the +slaying of beasts in the chase and in defense. We do not fashion +weapons solely for the killing of man as do your peoples. Your +country must indeed be a savage country, from which you are fortunate +to have escaped to the peace and security of Caspak." + +Here was a new and refreshing viewpoint; nor could I take exception +to it after what I had told Altan of the great war which had been +raging in Europe for over two years before I left home. + +On the march to the Kro-lu village we were continually stalked by +innumerable beasts of prey, and three times we were attacked by +frightful creatures; but Altan took it all as a matter of course, +rushing forward with raised spear or sending a heavy shaft into +the body of the attacker and then returning to our conversation +as though no interruption had occurred. Twice were members of his +band mauled, and one was killed by a huge and bellicose rhinoceros; +but the instant the action was over, it was as though it never had +occurred. The dead man was stripped of his belongings and left +where he had died; the carnivora would take care of his burial. +The trophies that these Kro-lu left to the meat-eaters would have +turned an English big-game hunter green with envy. They did, it +is true, cut all the edible parts from the rhino and carry them +home; but already they were pretty well weighted down with the +spoils of the chase, and only the fact that they are particularly +fond of rhino-meat caused them to do so. + +They left the hide on the pieces they selected, as they use it +for sandals, shield-covers, the hilts of their knives and various +other purposes where tough hide is desirable. I was much interested +in their shields, especially after I saw one used in defense against +the attack of a saber-tooth tiger. The huge creature had charged +us without warning from a clump of dense bushes where it was lying +up after eating. It was met with an avalanche of spears, some of +which passed entirely through its body, with such force were they +hurled. The charge was from a very short distance, requiring +the use of the spear rather than the bow and arrow; but after the +launching of the spears, the men not directly in the path of the +charge sent bolt after bolt into the great carcass with almost +incredible rapidity. The beast, screaming with pain and rage, bore +down upon Chal-az while I stood helpless with my rifle for fear +of hitting one of the warriors who were closing in upon it. But +Chal-az was ready. Throwing aside his bow, he crouched behind +his large oval shield, in the center of which was a hole about six +inches in diameter. The shield was held by tight loops to his left +arm, while in his right hand he grasped his heavy knife. Bristling +with spears and arrows, the great cat hurled itself upon the shield, +and down went Chal-az upon his back with the shield entirely covering +him. The tiger clawed and bit at the heavy rhinoceros hide with +which the shield was faced, while Chal-az, through the round hole in +the shield's center, plunged his blade repeatedly into the vitals +of the savage animal. Doubtless the battle would have gone to +Chal-az even though I had not interfered; but the moment that I +saw a clean opening, with no Kro-lu beyond, I raised my rifle and +killed the beast. + +When Chal-az arose, he glanced at the sky and remarked that it +looked like rain. The others already had resumed the march toward +the village. The incident was closed. For some unaccountable +reason the whole thing reminded me of a friend who once shot a cat +in his backyard. For three weeks he talked of nothing else. + +It was almost dark when we reached the village--a large palisaded +enclosure of several hundred leaf-thatched huts set in groups +of from two to seven. The huts were hexagonal in form, and where +grouped were joined so that they resembled the cells of a bee-hive. +One hut meant a warrior and his mate, and each additional hut in a +group indicated an additional female. The palisade which surrounded +the village was of logs set close together and woven into a solid +wall with tough creepers which were planted at their base and +trained to weave in and out to bind the logs together. The logs +slanted outward at an angle of about thirty degrees, in which +position they were held by shorter logs embedded in the ground +at right angles to them and with their upper ends supporting the +longer pieces a trifle above their centers of equilibrium. Along +the top of the palisade sharpened stakes had been driven at all +sorts of angles. + +The only opening into the inclosure was through a small aperture +three feet wide and three feet high, which was closed from the inside +by logs about six feet long laid horizontally, one upon another, +between the inside face of the palisade and two other braced logs +which paralleled the face of the wall upon the inside. + +As we entered the village, we were greeted by a not unfriendly +crowd of curious warriors and women, to whom Chal-az generously +explained the service we had rendered him, whereupon they showered +us with the most well-meant attentions, for Chal-az, it seemed, +was a most popular member of the tribe. Necklaces of lion and +tiger-teeth, bits of dried meat, finely tanned hides and earthen +pots, beautifully decorated, they thrust upon us until we were +loaded down, and all the while Al-tan glared balefully upon us, +seemingly jealous of the attentions heaped upon us because we had +served Chal-az. + +At last we reached a hut that they set apart for us, and there we +cooked our meat and some vegetables the women brought us, and had +milk from cows--the first I had had in Caspak--and cheese from +the milk of wild goats, with honey and thin bread made from wheat +flour of their own grinding, and grapes and the fermented juice +of grapes. It was quite the most wonderful meal I had eaten since +I quit the Toreador and Bowen J. Tyler's colored chef, who could +make pork-chops taste like chicken, and chicken taste like heaven. + + + + + +Chapter 6 + + + + +After dinner I rolled a cigaret and stretched myself at ease upon +a pile of furs before the doorway, with Ajor's head pillowed in my +lap and a feeling of great content pervading me. It was the first +time since my plane had topped the barrier-cliffs of Caspak that I +had felt any sense of peace or security. My hand wandered to the +velvet cheek of the girl I had claimed as mine, and to her luxuriant +hair and the golden fillet which bound it close to her shapely +head. Her slender fingers groping upward sought mine and drew them +to her lips, and then I gathered her in my arms and crushed her to +me, smothering her mouth with a long, long kiss. It was the first +time that passion had tinged my intercourse with Ajor. We were +alone, and the hut was ours until morning. + +But now from beyond the palisade in the direction of the main gate +came the hallooing of men and the answering calls and queries of +the guard. We listened. Returning hunters, no doubt. We heard +them enter the village amidst the barking dogs. I have forgotten +to mention the dogs of Kro-lu. The village swarmed with them, +gaunt, wolflike creatures that guarded the herd by day when it +grazed without the palisade, ten dogs to a cow. By night the cows +were herded in an outer inclosure roofed against the onslaughts of +the carnivorous cats; and the dogs, with the exception of a few, +were brought into the village; these few well-tested brutes remained +with the herd. During the day they fed plentifully upon the beasts +of prey which they killed in protection of the herd, so that their +keep amounted to nothing at all. + +Shortly after the commotion at the gate had subsided, Ajor and +I arose to enter the hut, and at the same time a warrior appeared +from one of the twisted alleys which, lying between the irregularly +placed huts and groups of huts, form the streets of the Kro-lu +village. The fellow halted before us and addressed me, saying +that Al-tan desired my presence at his hut. The wording of the +invitation and the manner of the messenger threw me entirely off +my guard, so cordial was the one and respectful the other, and the +result was that I went willingly, telling Ajor that I would return +presently. I had laid my arms and ammunition aside as soon as we +had taken over the hut, and I left them with Ajor now, as I had +noticed that aside from their hunting-knives the men of Kro-lu +bore no weapons about the village streets. There was an atmosphere +of peace and security within that village that I had not hoped to +experience within Caspak, and after what I had passed through, it +must have cast a numbing spell over my faculties of judgment and +reason. I had eaten of the lotus-flower of safety; dangers no +longer threatened for they had ceased to be. + +The messenger led me through the labyrinthine alleys to an open +plaza near the center of the village. At one end of this plaza was +a long hut, much the largest that I had yet seen, before the door +of which were many warriors. I could see that the interior was +lighted and that a great number of men were gathered within. The +dogs about the plaza were as thick as fleas, and those I approached +closely evinced a strong desire to devour me, their noses evidently +apprising them of the fact that I was of an alien race, since +they paid no attention whatever to my companion. Once inside the +council-hut, for such it appeared to be, I found a large concourse +of warriors seated, or rather squatted, around the floor. At +one end of the oval space which the warriors left down the center +of the room stood Al-tan and another warrior whom I immediately +recognized as a Galu, and then I saw that there were many Galus +present. About the walls were a number of flaming torches stuck +in holes in a clay plaster which evidently served the purpose of +preventing the inflammable wood and grasses of which the hut was +composed from being ignited by the flames. Lying about among the +warriors or wandering restlessly to and fro were a number of savage +dogs. + +The warriors eyed me curiously as I entered, especially the Galus, +and then I was conducted into the center of the group and led forward +toward Al-tan. As I advanced I felt one of the dogs sniffing at +my heels, and of a sudden a great brute leaped upon my back. As +I turned to thrust it aside before its fangs found a hold upon me, +I beheld a huge Airedale leaping frantically about me. The grinning +jaws, the half-closed eyes, the back-laid ears spoke to me louder +than might the words of man that here was no savage enemy but +a joyous friend, and then I recognized him, and fell to one knee +and put my arms about his neck while he whined and cried with joy. +It was Nobs, dear old Nobs. Bowen Tyler's Nobs, who had loved me +next to his master. + +"Where is the master of this dog?" I asked, turning toward Al-tan. + +The chieftain inclined his head toward the Galu standing at his +side. "He belongs to Du-seen the Galu," he replied. + +"He belongs to Bowen J. Tyler, Jr., of Santa Monica," I retorted, +"and I want to know where his master is." + +The Galu shrugged. "The dog is mine," he said. "He came to +me cor-sva-jo, and he is unlike any dog in Caspak, being kind and +docile and yet a killer when aroused. I would not part with him. +I do not know the man of whom you speak." + +So this was Du-seen! This was the man from whom Ajor had fled. I +wondered if he knew that she was here. I wondered if they had sent +for me because of her; but after they had commenced to question me, +my mind was relieved; they did not mention Ajor. Their interest +seemed centered upon the strange world from which I had come, +my journey to Caspak and my intentions now that I had arrived. I +answered them frankly as I had nothing to conceal and assured +them that my only wish was to find my friends and return to my own +country. In the Galu Du-seen and his warriors I saw something of +the explanation of the term "golden race" which is applied to them, +for their ornaments and weapons were either wholly of beaten gold +or heavily decorated with the precious metal. They were a very +imposing set of men--tall and straight and handsome. About their +heads were bands of gold like that which Ajor wore, and from their +left shoulders depended the leopard-tails of the Galus. In addition +to the deer-skin tunic which constituted the major portion of their +apparel, each carried a light blanket of barbaric yet beautiful +design--the first evidence of weaving I had seen in Caspak. Ajor +had had no blanket, having lost it during her flight from the +attentions of Du-seen; nor was she so heavily incrusted with gold +as these male members of her tribe. + +The audience must have lasted fully an hour when Al-tan signified +that I might return to my hut. All the time Nobs had lain quietly +at my feet; but the instant that I turned to leave, he was up and +after me. Duseen called to him; but the terrier never even so +much as looked in his direction. I had almost reached the doorway +leading from the council-hall when Al-tan rose and called after +me. "Stop!" he shouted. "Stop, stranger! The beast of Du-seen +the Galu follows you." + +"The dog is not Du-seen's," I replied. "He belongs to my friend, +as I told you, and he prefers to stay with me until his master is +found." And I turned again to resume my way. I had taken but a +few steps when I heard a commotion behind me, and at the same moment +a man leaned close and whispered "Kazar!" close to my ear--kazar, +the Caspakian equivalent of beware. It was To-mar. As he spoke, +he turned quickly away as though loath to have others see that +he knew me, and at the same instant I wheeled to discover Du-seen +striding rapidly after me. Al-tan followed him, and it was evident +that both were angry. + +Du-seen, a weapon half drawn, approached truculently. "The beast +is mine," he reiterated. "Would you steal him?" + +"He is not yours nor mine," I replied, "and I am not stealing him. +If he wishes to follow you, he may; I will not interfere; but if +he wishes to follow me, he shall; nor shall you prevent." I turned +to Al-tan. "Is not that fair?" I demanded. "Let the dog choose +his master." + +Du-seen, without waiting for Al-tan's reply, reached for Nobs and +grasped him by the scruff of the neck. I did not interfere, for +I guessed what would happen; and it did. With a savage growl Nobs +turned like lightning upon the Galu, wrenched loose from his hold +and leaped for his throat. The man stepped back and warded off +the first attack with a heavy blow of his fist, immediately drawing +his knife with which to meet the Airedale's return. And Nobs would +have returned, all right, had not I spoken to him. In a low voice +I called him to heel. For just an instant he hesitated, standing +there trembling and with bared fangs, glaring at his foe; but he +was well trained and had been out with me quite as much as he had +with Bowen--in fact, I had had most to do with his early training; +then he walked slowly and very stiff-legged to his place behind +me. + +Du-seen, red with rage, would have had it out with the two of us +had not Al-tan drawn him to one side and whispered in his ear--upon +which, with a grunt, the Galu walked straight back to the opposite +end of the hall, while Nobs and I continued upon our way toward +the hut and Ajor. As we passed out into the village plaza, I saw +Chal-az--we were so close to one another that I could have reached +out and touched him--and our eyes met; but though I greeted him +pleasantly and paused to speak to him, he brushed past me without +a sign of recognition. I was puzzled at his behavior, and then +I recalled that To-mar, though he had warned me, had appeared not +to wish to seem friendly with me. I could not understand their +attitude, and was trying to puzzle out some sort of explanation, +when the matter was suddenly driven from my mind by the report of +a firearm. Instantly I broke into a run, my brain in a whirl of +forebodings, for the only firearms in the Kro-lu country were those +I had left in the hut with Ajor. + +That she was in danger I could not but fear, as she was now something +of an adept in the handling of both the pistol and rifle, a fact +which largely eliminated the chance that the shot had come from an +accidentally discharged firearm. When I left the hut, I had felt +that she and I were safe among friends; no thought of danger was in +my mind; but since my audience with Al-tan, the presence and bearing +of Duseen and the strange attitude of both To-mar and Chal-az had +each contributed toward arousing my suspicions, and now I ran along +the narrow, winding alleys of the Kro-lu village with my heart +fairly in my mouth. + +I am endowed with an excellent sense of direction, which has been +greatly perfected by the years I have spent in the mountains and +upon the plains and deserts of my native state, so that it was +with little or no difficulty that I found my way back to the hut +in which I had left Ajor. As I entered the doorway, I called her +name aloud. There was no response. I drew a box of matches from +my pocket and struck a light and as the flame flared up, a half-dozen +brawny warriors leaped upon me from as many directions; but even +in the brief instant that the flare lasted, I saw that Ajor was +not within the hut, and that my arms and ammunition had been removed. + +As the six men leaped upon me, an angry growl burst from behind +them. I had forgotten Nobs. Like a demon of hate he sprang among +those Kro-lu fighting-men, tearing, rending, ripping with his long +tusks and his mighty jaws. They had me down in an instant, and it +goes without saying that the six of them could have kept me there +had it not been for Nobs; but while I was struggling to throw them +off, Nobs was springing first upon one and then upon another of +them until they were so put to it to preserve their hides and their +lives from him that they could give me only a small part of their +attention. One of them was assiduously attempting to strike me on +the head with his stone hatchet; but I caught his arm and at the +same time turned over upon my belly, after which it took but an +instant to get my feet under me and rise suddenly. + +As I did so, I kept a grip upon the man's arm, carrying it over one +shoulder. Then I leaned suddenly forward and hurled my antagonist +over my head to a hasty fall at the opposite side of the hut. In +the dim light of the interior I saw that Nobs had already accounted +for one of the others--one who lay very quiet upon the floor--while +the four remaining upon their feet were striking at him with knives +and hatchets. + +Running to one side of the man I had just put out of the fighting, +I seized his hatchet and knife, and in another moment was in the +thick of the argument. I was no match for these savage warriors +with their own weapons and would soon have gone down to ignominious +defeat and death had it not been for Nobs, who alone was a match +for the four of them. I never saw any creature so quick upon its +feet as was that great Airedale, nor such frightful ferocity as he +manifested in his attacks. It was as much the latter as the former +which contributed to the undoing of our enemies, who, accustomed +though they were to the ferocity of terrible creatures, seemed awed +by the sight of this strange beast from another world battling at +the side of his equally strange master. Yet they were no cowards, +and only by teamwork did Nobs and I overcome them at last. We +would rush for a man, simultaneously, and as Nobs leaped for him +upon one side, I would strike at his head with the stone hatchet +from the other. + +As the last man went down, I heard the running of many feet approaching +us from the direction of the plaza. To be captured now would mean +death; yet I could not attempt to leave the village without first +ascertaining the whereabouts of Ajor and releasing her if she were +held a captive. That I could escape the village I was not at all +sure; but of one thing I was positive; that it would do neither +Ajor nor myself any service to remain where I was and be captured; +so with Nobs, bloody but happy, following at heel, I turned down +the first alley and slunk away in the direction of the northern +end of the village. + +Friendless and alone, hunted through the dark labyrinths of this +savage community, I seldom have felt more helpless than at that +moment; yet far transcending any fear which I may have felt for my +own safety was my concern for that of Ajor. What fate had befallen +her? Where was she, and in whose power? That I should live to +learn the answers to these queries I doubted; but that I should +face death gladly in the attempt--of that I was certain. And why? +With all my concern for the welfare of my friends who had accompanied +me to Caprona, and of my best friend of all, Bowen J. Tyler, Jr., +I never yet had experienced the almost paralyzing fear for the +safety of any other creature which now threw me alternately into a +fever of despair and into a cold sweat of apprehension as my mind +dwelt upon the fate on one bit of half-savage femininity of whose +very existence even I had not dreamed a few short weeks before. + +What was this hold she had upon me? Was I bewitched, that my mind +refused to function sanely, and that judgment and reason were +dethroned by some mad sentiment which I steadfastly refused to believe +was love? I had never been in love. I was not in love now--the +very thought was preposterous. How could I, Thomas Billings, the +right-hand man of the late Bowen J. Tyler, Sr., one of America's +foremost captains of industry and the greatest man in California, +be in love with a--a--the word stuck in my throat; yet by my own +American standards Ajor could be nothing else; at home, for all +her beauty, for all her delicately tinted skin, little Ajor by her +apparel, by the habits and customs and manners of her people, by +her life, would have been classed a squaw. Tom Billings in love +with a squaw! I shuddered at the thought. + +And then there came to my mind, in a sudden, brilliant flash upon +the screen of recollection the picture of Ajor as I had last seen +her, and I lived again the delicious moment in which we had clung +to one another, lips smothering lips, as I left her to go to the +council hall of Al-tan; and I could have kicked myself for the +snob and the cad that my thoughts had proven me--me, who had always +prided myself that I was neither the one nor the other! + +These things ran through my mind as Nobs and I made our way through +the dark village, the voices and footsteps of those who sought us +still in our ears. These and many other things, nor could I escape +the incontrovertible fact that the little figure round which +my recollections and my hopes entwined themselves was that of +Ajor--beloved barbarian! My reveries were broken in upon by a hoarse +whisper from the black interior of a hut past which we were making +our way. My name was called in a low voice, and a man stepped out +beside me as I halted with raised knife. It was Chal-az. + +"Quick!" he warned. "In here! It is my hut, and they will not +search it." + +I hesitated, recalled his attitude of a few minutes before; and +as though he had read my thoughts, he said quickly: "I could not +speak to you in the plaza without danger of arousing suspicions +which would prevent me aiding you later, for word had gone out +that Al-tan had turned against you and would destroy you--this was +after Du-seen the Galu arrived." + +I followed him into the hut, and with Nobs at our heels we passed +through several chambers into a remote and windowless apartment +where a small lamp sputtered in its unequal battle with the inky +darkness. A hole in the roof permitted the smoke from burning +oil egress; yet the atmosphere was far from lucid. Here Chal-az +motioned me to a seat upon a furry hide spread upon the earthen +floor. + +"I am your friend," he said. "You saved my life; and I am no +ingrate as is the batu Al-tan. I will serve you, and there are +others here who will serve you against Al-tan and this renegade +Galu, Du-seen." + +"But where is Ajor?" I asked, for I cared little for my own safety +while she was in danger. + +"Ajor is safe, too," he answered. "We learned the designs of Al-tan +and Du-seen. The latter, learning that Ajor was here, demanded her; +and Al-tan promised that he should have her; but when the warriors +went to get her To-mar went with them. Ajor tried to defend herself. +She killed one of the warriors, and then To-mar picked her up in +his arms when the others had taken her weapons from her. He told +the others to look after the wounded man, who was really already +dead, and to seize you upon your return, and that he, To-mar, would +bear Ajor to Al-tan; but instead of bearing her to Al-tan, he took +her to his own hut, where she now is with So-al, To-mar's she. It +all happened very quickly. To-mar and I were in the council-hut +when Du-seen attempted to take the dog from you. I was seeking +To-mar for this work. He ran out immediately and accompanied the +warriors to your hut while I remained to watch what went on within +the council-hut and to aid you if you needed aid. What has happened +since you know." + +I thanked him for his loyalty and then asked him to take me to Ajor; +but he said that it could not be done, as the village streets were +filled with searchers. In fact, we could hear them passing to and +fro among the huts, making inquiries, and at last Chal-az thought +it best to go to the doorway of his dwelling, which consisted of +many huts joined together, lest they enter and search. + +Chal-az was absent for a long time--several hours which seemed an +eternity to me. All sounds of pursuit had long since ceased, and +I was becoming uneasy because of his protracted absence when I +heard him returning through the other apartments of his dwelling. +He was perturbed when he entered that in which I awaited him, and +I saw a worried expression upon his face. + +"What is wrong?" I asked. "Have they found Ajor?" + +"No," he replied; "but Ajor has gone. She learned that you had +escaped them and was told that you had left the village, believing +that she had escaped too. So-al could not detain her. She made her +way out over the top of the palisade, armed with only her knife." + +"Then I must go," I said, rising. Nobs rose and shook himself. +He had been dead asleep when I spoke. + +"Yes," agreed Chal-az, "you must go at once. It is almost dawn. +Du-seen leaves at daylight to search for her." He leaned close +to my ear and whispered: "There are many to follow and help you. +Al-tan has agreed to aid Du-seen against the Galus of Jor; but +there are many of us who have combined to rise against Al-tan and +prevent this ruthless desecration of the laws and customs of the +Kro-lu and of Caspak. We will rise as Luata has ordained that we +shall rise, and only thus. No batu may win to the estate of a Galu +by treachery and force of arms while Chal-az lives and may wield +a heavy blow and a sharp spear with true Kro-lus at his back!" + +"I hope that I may live to aid you," I replied. "If I had my weapons +and my ammunition, I could do much. Do you know where they are?" +"No," he said, "they have disappeared." And then: "Wait! You +cannot go forth half armed, and garbed as you are. You are going +into the Galu country, and you must go as a Galu. Come!" And +without waiting for a reply, he led me into another apartment, or +to be more explicit, another of the several huts which formed his +cellular dwelling. + +Here was a pile of skins, weapons, and ornaments. "Remove your +strange apparel," said Chal-az, "and I will fit you out as a true +Galu. I have slain several of them in the raids of my early days +as a Kro-lu, and here are their trappings." + +I saw the wisdom of his suggestion, and as my clothes were by now +so ragged as to but half conceal my nakedness, I had no regrets in +laying them aside. Stripped to the skin, I donned the red-deerskin +tunic, the leopard-tail, the golden fillet, armlets and leg-ornaments +of a Galu, with the belt, scabbard and knife, the shield, spear, +bow and arrow and the long rope which I learned now for the first +time is the distinctive weapon of the Galu warrior. It is a rawhide +rope, not dissimilar to those of the Western plains and cow-camps +of my youth. The honda is a golden oval and accurate weight for +the throwing of the noose. This heavy honda, Chal-az explained, +is used as a weapon, being thrown with great force and accuracy at +an enemy and then coiled in for another cast. In hunting and in +battle, they use both the noose and the honda. If several warriors +surround a single foeman or quarry, they rope it with the noose +from several sides; but a single warrior against a lone antagonist +will attempt to brain his foe with the metal oval. + +I could not have been more pleased with any weapon, short of a +rifle, which he could have found for me, since I have been adept with +the rope from early childhood; but I must confess that I was less +favorably inclined toward my apparel. In so far as the sensation +was concerned, I might as well have been entirely naked, so short +and light was the tunic. When I asked Chal-az for the Caspakian +name for rope, he told me ga, and for the first time I understood +the derivation of the word Galu, which means ropeman. + +Entirely outfitted I would not have known myself, so strange was +my garb and my armament. Upon my back were slung my bow, arrows, +shield, and short spear; from the center of my girdle depended my +knife; at my right hip was my stone hatchet; and at my left hung +the coils of my long rope. By reaching my right hand over my left +shoulder, I could seize the spear or arrows; my left hand could find +my bow over my right shoulder, while a veritable contortionist-act +was necessary to place my shield in front of me and upon my left +arm. The shield, long and oval, is utilized more as back-armor than +as a defense against frontal attack, for the close-set armlets of +gold upon the left forearm are principally depended upon to ward +off knife, spear, hatchet, or arrow from in front; but against the +greater carnivora and the attacks of several human antagonists, +the shield is utilized to its best advantage and carried by loops +upon the left arm. + +Fully equipped, except for a blanket, I followed Chal-az from his +domicile into the dark and deserted alleys of Kro-lu. Silently +we crept along, Nobs silent at heel, toward the nearest portion of +the palisade. Here Chal-az bade me farewell, telling me that he +hoped to see me soon among the Galus, as he felt that "the call +soon would come" to him. I thanked him for his loyal assistance and +promised that whether I reached the Galu country or not, I should +always stand ready to repay his kindness to me, and that he could +count on me in the revolution against Al-tan. + + + + + +Chapter 7 + + + + +To run up the inclined surface of the palisade and drop to the +ground outside was the work of but a moment, or would have been but +for Nobs. I had to put my rope about him after we reached the top, +lift him over the sharpened stakes and lower him upon the outside. +To find Ajor in the unknown country to the north seemed rather +hopeless; yet I could do no less than try, praying in the meanwhile +that she would come through unscathed and in safety to her father. + +As Nobs and I swung along in the growing light of the coming day, +I was impressed by the lessening numbers of savage beasts the +farther north I traveled. With the decrease among the carnivora, +the herbivora increased in quantity, though anywhere in Caspak they +are sufficiently plentiful to furnish ample food for the meateaters +of each locality. The wild cattle, antelope, deer, and horses +I passed showed changes in evolution from their cousins farther +south. The kine were smaller and less shaggy, the horses larger. +North of the Kro-lu village I saw a small band of the latter +of about the size of those of our old Western plains--such as the +Indians bred in former days and to a lesser extent even now. They +were fat and sleek, and I looked upon them with covetous eyes and +with thoughts that any old cow-puncher may well imagine I might +entertain after having hoofed it for weeks; but they were wary, +scarce permitting me to approach within bow-and-arrow range, much +less within roping-distance; yet I still had hopes which I never +discarded. + +Twice before noon we were stalked and charged by man-eaters; but +even though I was without firearms, I still had ample protection in +Nobs, who evidently had learned something of Caspakian hunt rules +under the tutelage of Du-seen or some other Galu, and of course +a great deal more by experience. He always was on the alert for +dangerous foes, invariably warning me by low growls of the approach +of a large carnivorous animal long before I could either see or +hear it, and then when the thing appeared, he would run snapping +at its heels, drawing the charge away from me until I found safety +in some tree; yet never did the wily Nobs take an unnecessary chance +of a mauling. He would dart in and away so quickly that not even +the lightning-like movements of the great cats could reach him. +I have seen him tantalize them thus until they fairly screamed in +rage. + +The greatest inconvenience the hunters caused me was the delay, +for they have a nasty habit of keeping one treed for an hour or +more if balked in their designs; but at last we came in sight of +a line of cliffs running east and west across our path as far as +the eye could see in either direction, and I knew that we reached +the natural boundary which marks the line between the Kro-lu and +Galu countries. The southern face of these cliffs loomed high and +forbidding, rising to an altitude of some two hundred feet, sheer +and precipitous, without a break that the eye could perceive. How +I was to find a crossing I could not guess. Whether to search to +the east toward the still loftier barrier-cliffs fronting upon the +ocean, or westward in the direction of the inland sea was a question +which baffled me. Were there many passes or only one? I had no +way of knowing. I could but trust to chance. It never occurred +to me that Nobs had made the crossing at least once, possibly +a greater number of times, and that he might lead me to the pass; +and so it was with no idea of assistance that I appealed to him as +a man alone with a dumb brute so often does. + +"Nobs," I said, "how the devil are we going to cross those cliffs?" + +I do not say that he understood me, even though I realize that an +Airedale is a mighty intelligent dog; but I do swear that he seemed +to understand me, for he wheeled about, barking joyously and trotted +off toward the west; and when I didn't follow him, he ran back to +me barking furiously, and at last taking hold of the calf of my leg +in an effort to pull me along in the direction he wished me to go. +Now, as my legs were naked and Nobs' jaws are much more powerful +than he realizes, I gave in and followed him, for I knew that +I might as well go west as east, as far as any knowledge I had of +the correct direction went. + +We followed the base of the cliffs for a considerable distance. +The ground was rolling and tree-dotted and covered with grazing +animals, alone, in pairs and in herds--a motley aggregation of the +modern and extinct herbivore of the world. A huge woolly mastodon +stood swaying to and fro in the shade of a giant fern--a mighty +bull with enormous upcurving tusks. Near him grazed an aurochs +bull with a cow and a calf, close beside a lone rhinoceros asleep +in a dust-hole. Deer, antelope, bison, horses, sheep, and goats +were all in sight at the same time, and at a little distance a +great megatherium reared up on its huge tail and massive hind feet +to tear the leaves from a tall tree. The forgotten past rubbed +flanks with the present--while Tom Billings, modern of the moderns, +passed in the garb of pre-Glacial man, and before him trotted a +creature of a breed scarce sixty years old. Nobs was a parvenu; +but it failed to worry him. + +As we neared the inland sea we saw more flying reptiles and several +great amphibians, but none of them attacked us. As we were topping +a rise in the middle of the afternoon, I saw something that brought +me to a sudden stop. Calling Nobs in a whisper, I cautioned him to +silence and kept him at heel while I threw myself flat and watched, +from behind a sheltering shrub, a body of warriors approaching +the cliff from the south. I could see that they were Galus, and I +guessed that Du-seen led them. They had taken a shorter route to +the pass and so had overhauled me. I could see them plainly, for +they were no great distance away, and saw with relief that Ajor +was not with them. + +The cliffs before them were broken and ragged, those coming from +the east overlapping the cliffs from the west. Into the defile +formed by this overlapping the party filed. I could see them +climbing upward for a few minutes, and then they disappeared from +view. When the last of them had passed from sight, I rose and bent +my steps in the direction of the pass--the same pass toward which +Nobs had evidently been leading me. I went warily as I approached +it, for fear the party might have halted to rest. If they hadn't +halted, I had no fear of being discovered, for I had seen that +the Galus marched without point, flankers or rear guard; and when +I reached the pass and saw a narrow, one-man trail leading upward +at a stiff angle, I wished that I were chief of the Galus for a +few weeks. A dozen men could hold off forever in that narrow pass +all the hordes which might be brought up from the south; yet there +it lay entirely unguarded. + +The Galus might be a great people in Caspak; but they were pitifully +inefficient in even the simpler forms of military tactics. I was +surprised that even a man of the Stone Age should be so lacking +in military perspicacity. Du-seen dropped far below par in my +estimation as I saw the slovenly formation of his troop as it passed +through an enemy country and entered the domain of the chief against +whom he had risen in revolt; but Du-seen must have known Jor the +chief and known that Jor would not be waiting for him at the pass. +Nevertheless he took unwarranted chances. With one squad of a +home-guard company I could have conquered Caspak. + +Nobs and I followed to the summit of the pass, and there we saw the +party defiling into the Galu country, the level of which was not, +on an average, over fifty feet below the summit of the cliffs and +about a hundred and fifty feet above the adjacent Kro-lu domain. +Immediately the landscape changed. The trees, the flowers and the +shrubs were of a hardier type, and I realized that at night the +Galu blanket might be almost a necessity. Acacia and eucalyptus +predominated among the trees; yet there were ash and oak and even +pine and fir and hemlock. The tree-life was riotous. The forests +were dense and peopled by enormous trees. From the summit of the +cliff I could see forests rising hundreds of feet above the level +upon which I stood, and even at the distance they were from me I +realized that the boles were of gigantic size. + +At last I had come to the Galu country. Though not conceived in +Caspak, I had indeed come up cor-sva jo--from the beginning I had +come up through the hideous horrors of the lower Caspakian spheres +of evolution, and I could not but feel something of the elation and +pride which had filled To-mar and So-al when they realized that the +call had come to them and they were about to rise from the estate +of Band-lus to that of Kro-lus. I was glad that I was not batu. + +But where was Ajor? Though my eyes searched the wide landscape +before me, I saw nothing other than the warriors of Du-seen and +the beasts of the fields and the forests. Surrounded by forests, +I could see wide plains dotting the country as far as the eye could +reach; but nowhere was a sign of a small Galu she--the beloved she +whom I would have given my right hand to see. + +Nobs and I were hungry; we had not eaten since the preceding night, +and below us was game-deer, sheep, anything that a hungry hunter +might crave; so down the steep trail we made our way, and then +upon my belly with Nobs crouching low behind me, I crawled toward a +small herd of red deer feeding at the edge of a plain close beside +a forest. There was ample cover, what with solitary trees and +dotting bushes so that I found no difficulty in stalking up wind +to within fifty feet of my quarry--a large, sleek doe unaccompanied +by a fawn. Greatly then did I regret my rifle. Never in my life +had I shot an arrow, but I knew how it was done, and fitting the +shaft to my string, I aimed carefully and let drive. At the same +instant I called to Nobs and leaped to me feet. + +The arrow caught the doe full in the side, and in the same moment +Nobs was after her. She turned to flee with the two of us pursuing +her, Nobs with his great fangs bared and I with my short spear +poised for a cast. The balance of the herd sprang quickly away; +but the hurt doe lagged, and in a moment Nobs was beside her and +had leaped at her throat. He had her down when I came up, and I +finished her with my spear. It didn't take me long to have a fire +going and a steak broiling, and while I was preparing for my own +feast, Nobs was filling himself with raw venison. Never have I +enjoyed a meal so heartily. + +For two days I searched fruitlessly back and forth from the inland +sea almost to the barrier cliffs for some trace of Ajor, and always +I trended northward; but I saw no sign of any human being, not even +the band of Galu warriors under Du-seen; and then I commenced to +have misgivings. Had Chal-az spoken the truth to me when he said +that Ajor had quit the village of the Kro-lu? Might he not have +been acting upon the orders of Al-tan, in whose savage bosom might +have lurked some small spark of shame that he had attempted to do +to death one who had befriended a Kro-lu warrior--a guest who had +brought no harm upon the Kro-lu race--and thus have sent me out +upon a fruitless mission in the hope that the wild beasts would do +what Al-tan hesitated to do? I did not know; but the more I thought +upon it, the more convinced I became that Ajor had not quitted the +Kro-lu village; but if not, what had brought Du-seen forth without +her? There was a puzzler, and once again I was all at sea. + +On the second day of my experience of the Galu country I came upon a +bunch of as magnificent horses as it has ever been my lot to see. +They were dark bays with blazed faces and perfect surcingles of +white about their barrels. Their forelegs were white to the knees. +In height they stood almost sixteen hands, the mares being a trifle +smaller than the stallions, of which there were three or four in +this band of a hundred, which comprised many colts and half-grown +horses. Their markings were almost identical, indicating a purity +of strain that might have persisted since long ages ago. If I had +coveted one of the little ponies of the Kro-lu country, imagine +my state of mind when I came upon these magnificent creatures! No +sooner had I espied them than I determined to possess one of them; +nor did it take me long to select a beautiful young stallion--a +four-year-old, I guessed him. + +The horses were grazing close to the edge of the forest in which +Nobs and I were concealed, while the ground between us and them +was dotted with clumps of flowering brush which offered perfect +concealment. The stallion of my choice grazed with a filly and two +yearlings a little apart from the balance of the herd and nearest +to the forest and to me. At my whispered "Charge!" Nobs flattened +himself to the ground, and I knew that he would not again move until +I called him, unless danger threatened me from the rear. Carefully +I crept forward toward my unsuspecting quarry, coming undetected +to the concealment of a bush not more than twenty feet from him. +Here I quietly arranged my noose, spreading it flat and open upon +the ground. + +To step to one side of the bush and throw directly from the ground, +which is the style I am best in, would take but an instant, and +in that instant the stallion would doubtless be under way at top +speed in the opposite direction. Then he would have to wheel about +when I surprised him, and in doing so, he would most certainly +rise slightly upon his hind feet and throw up his head, presenting +a perfect target for my noose as he pivoted. + +Yes, I had it beautifully worked out, and I waited until he should +turn in my direction. At last it became evident that he was doing +so, when apparently without cause, the filly raised her head, neighed +and started off at a trot in the opposite direction, immediately +followed, of course, by the colts and my stallion. It looked for +a moment as though my last hope was blasted; but presently their +fright, if fright it was, passed, and they resumed grazing again +a hundred yards farther on. This time there was no bush within +fifty feet of them, and I was at a loss as to how to get within +safe roping-distance. Anywhere under forty feet I am an excellent +roper, at fifty feet I am fair; but over that I knew it would +be a matter of luck if I succeeded in getting my noose about that +beautiful arched neck. + +As I stood debating the question in my mind, I was almost upon the +point of making the attempt at the long throw. I had plenty of +rope, this Galu weapon being fully sixty feet long. How I wished +for the collies from the ranch! At a word they would have circled +this little bunch and driven it straight down to me; and then it +flashed into my mind that Nobs had run with those collies all one +summer, that he had gone down to the pasture with them after the +cows every evening and done his part in driving them back to the +milking-barn, and had done it intelligently; but Nobs had never +done the thing alone, and it had been a year since he had done it +at all. However, the chances were more in favor of my foozling +the long throw than that Nobs would fall down in his part if I gave +him the chance. + +Having come to a decision, I had to creep back to Nobs and get him, +and then with him at my heels return to a large bush near the four +horses. Here we could see directly through the bush, and pointing +the animals out to Nobs I whispered: "Fetch 'em, boy!" + +In an instant he was gone, circling wide toward the rear of the +quarry. They caught sight of him almost immediately and broke +into a trot away from him; but when they saw that he was apparently +giving them a wide berth they stopped again, though they stood +watching him, with high-held heads and quivering nostrils. It was +a beautiful sight. And then Nobs turned in behind them and trotted +slowly back toward me. He did not bark, nor come rushing down upon +them, and when he had come closer to them, he proceeded at a walk. +The splendid creatures seemed more curious than fearful, making +no effort to escape until Nobs was quite close to them; then they +trotted slowly away, but at right angles. + +And now the fun and trouble commenced. Nobs, of course, attempted +to turn them, and he seemed to have selected the stallion to work +upon, for he paid no attention to the others, having intelligence +enough to know that a lone dog could run his legs off before he +could round up four horses that didn't wish to be rounded up. The +stallion, however, had notions of his own about being headed, and +the result was as pretty a race as one would care to see. Gad, how +that horse could run! He seemed to flatten out and shoot through +the air with the very minimum of exertion, and at his forefoot ran +Nobs, doing his best to turn him. He was barking now, and twice he +leaped high against the stallion's flank; but this cost too much +effort and always lost him ground, as each time he was hurled heels +over head by the impact; yet before they disappeared over a rise +in the ground I was sure that Nob's persistence was bearing fruit; +it seemed to me that the horse was giving way a trifle to the right. +Nobs was between him and the main herd, to which the yearling and +filly had already fled. + +As I stood waiting for Nobs' return, I could not but speculate +upon my chances should I be attacked by some formidable beast. I +was some distance from the forest and armed with weapons in the use +of which I was quite untrained, though I had practiced some with +the spear since leaving the Kro-lu country. I must admit that my +thoughts were not pleasant ones, verging almost upon cowardice, +until I chanced to think of little Ajor alone in this same land +and armed only with a knife! I was immediately filled with shame; +but in thinking the matter over since, I have come to the conclusion +that my state of mind was influenced largely by my approximate +nakedness. If you have never wandered about in broad daylight +garbed in a bit of red-deer skin in inadequate length, you can have +no conception of the sensation of futility that overwhelms one. +Clothes, to a man accustomed to wearing clothes, impart a certain +self-confidence; lack of them induces panic. + +But no beast attacked me, though I saw several menacing forms +passing through the dark aisles of the forest. At last I commenced +to worry over Nobs' protracted absence and to fear that something +had befallen him. I was coiling my rope to start out in search +of him, when I saw the stallion leap into view at almost the same +spot behind which he had disappeared, and at his heels ran Nobs. +Neither was running so fast or furiously as when last I had seen +them. + +The horse, as he approached me, I could see was laboring hard; yet +he kept gamely to his task, and Nobs, too. The splendid fellow was +driving the quarry straight toward me. I crouched behind my bush +and laid my noose in readiness to throw. As the two approached my +hiding-place, Nobs reduced his speed, and the stallion, evidently +only too glad of the respite, dropped into a trot. It was at this +gait that he passed me; my rope-hand flew forward; the honda, well +down, held the noose open, and the beautiful bay fairly ran his +head into it. + +Instantly he wheeled to dash off at right angles. I braced myself +with the rope around my hip and brought him to a sudden stand. +Rearing and struggling, he fought for his liberty while Nobs, +panting and with lolling tongue, came and threw himself down near +me. He seemed to know that his work was done and that he had +earned his rest. The stallion was pretty well spent, and after a +few minutes of struggling he stood with feet far spread, nostrils +dilated and eyes wide, watching me as I edged toward him, taking +in the slack of the rope as I advanced. A dozen times he reared +and tried to break away; but always I spoke soothingly to him and +after an hour of effort I succeeded in reaching his head and stroking +his muzzle. Then I gathered a handful of grass and offered it to +him, and always I talked to him in a quiet and reassuring voice. + +I had expected a battle royal; but on the contrary I found his +taming a matter of comparative ease. Though wild, he was gentle +to a degree, and of such remarkable intelligence that he soon +discovered that I had no intention of harming him. After that, +all was easy. Before that day was done, I had taught him to lead +and to stand while I stroked his head and flanks, and to eat from +my hand, and had the satisfaction of seeing the light of fear die +in his large, intelligent eyes. + +The following day I fashioned a hackamore from a piece which I cut +from the end of my long Galu rope, and then I mounted him fully +prepared for a struggle of titanic proportions in which I was none +too sure that he would not come off victor; but he never made the +slightest effort to unseat me, and from then on his education was +rapid. No horse ever learned more quickly the meaning of the rein +and the pressure of the knees. I think he soon learned to love +me, and I know that I loved him; while he and Nobs were the best +of pals. I called him Ace. I had a friend who was once in the +French flying-corps, and when Ace let himself out, he certainly +flew. + +I cannot explain to you, nor can you understand, unless you too are +a horseman, the exhilarating feeling of well-being which pervaded +me from the moment that I commenced riding Ace. I was a new man, +imbued with a sense of superiority that led me to feel that I could +go forth and conquer all Caspak single-handed. Now, when I needed +meat, I ran it down on Ace and roped it, and when some great beast +with which we could not cope threatened us, we galloped away to +safety; but for the most part the creatures we met looked upon us +in terror, for Ace and I in combination presented a new and unusual +beast beyond their experience and ken. + +For five days I rode back and forth across the southern end of the +Galu country without seeing a human being; yet all the time I was +working slowly toward the north, for I had determined to comb the +territory thoroughly in search of Ajor; but on the fifth day as +I emerged from a forest, I saw some distance ahead of me a single +small figure pursued by many others. Instantly I recognized the +quarry as Ajor. The entire party was fully a mile away from me, +and they were crossing my path at right angles. Ajor a few hundred +yards in advance of those who followed her. One of her pursuers +was far in advance of the others, and was gaining upon her rapidly. +With a word and a pressure of the knees I sent Ace leaping out into +the open, and with Nobs running close alongside, we raced toward +her. + +At first none of them saw us; but as we neared Ajor, the pack +behind the foremost pursuer discovered us and set up such a howl +as I never before have heard. They were all Galus, and I soon +recognized the foremost as Du-seen. He was almost upon Ajor now, +and with a sense of terror such as I had never before experienced, +I saw that he ran with his knife in his hand, and that his intention +was to slay rather than capture. I could not understand it, but +I could only urge Ace to greater speed, and most nobly did the +wondrous creature respond to my demands. If ever a four-footed +creature approximated flying, it was Ace that day. + +Du-seen, intent upon his brutal design, had as yet not noticed us. +He was within a pace of Ajor when Ace and I dashed between them, +and I, leaning down to the left, swept my little barbarian into +the hollow of an arm and up on the withers of my glorious Ace. We +had snatched her from the very clutches of Du-seen, who halted, +mystified and raging. Ajor, too, was mystified, as we had come +up from diagonally behind her so that she had no idea that we were +near until she was swung to Ace's back. The little savage turned +with drawn knife to stab me, thinking that I was some new enemy, +when her eyes found my face and she recognized me. With a little +sob she threw her arms about my neck, gasping: "My Tom! My Tom!" + +And then Ace sank suddenly into thick mud to his belly, and Ajor +and I were thrown far over his head. He had run into one of those +numerous springs which cover Caspak. Sometimes they are little +lakes, again but tiny pools, and often mere quagmires of mud, as +was this one overgrown with lush grasses which effectually hid its +treacherous identity. It is a wonder that Ace did not break a leg, +so fast he was going when he fell; but he didn't, though with four +good legs he was unable to wallow from the mire. Ajor and I had +sprawled face down in the covering grasses and so had not sunk +deeply; but when we tried to rise, we found that there was not +footing, and presently we saw that Du-seen and his followers were +coming down upon us. There was no escape. It was evident that we +were doomed. + +"Slay me!" begged Ajor. "Let me die at thy loved hands rather than +beneath the knife of this hateful thing, for he will kill me. He +has sworn to kill me. Last night he captured me, and when later +he would have his way with me, I struck him with my fists and with +my knife I stabbed him, and then I escaped, leaving him raging in +pain and thwarted desire. Today they searched for me and found +me; and as I fled, Du-seen ran after me crying that he would slay +me. Kill me, my Tom, and then fall upon thine own spear, for they +will kill you horribly if they take you alive." + +I couldn't kill her--not at least until the last moment; and I told +her so, and that I loved her, and that until death came, I would +live and fight for her. + +Nobs had followed us into the bog and had done fairly well at +first, but when he neared us he too sank to his belly and could +only flounder about. We were in this predicament when Du-seen and +his followers approached the edge of the horrible swamp. I saw that +Al-tan was with him and many other Kro-lu warriors. The alliance +against Jor the chief had, therefore, been consummated, and this +horde was already marching upon the Galu city. I sighed as I +thought how close I had been to saving not only Ajor but her father +and his people from defeat and death. + +Beyond the swamp was a dense wood. Could we have reached this, +we would have been safe; but it might as well have been a hundred +miles away as a hundred yards across that hidden lake of sticky mud. +Upon the edge of the swamp Du-seen and his horde halted to revile +us. They could not reach us with their hands; but at a command from +Du-seen they fitted arrows to their bows, and I saw that the end +had come. Ajor huddled close to me, and I took her in my arms. "I +love you, Tom," she said, "only you." Tears came to my eyes then, +not tears of self-pity for my predicament, but tears from a heart +filled with a great love--a heart that sees the sun of its life +and its love setting even as it rises. + +The renegade Galus and their Kro-lu allies stood waiting for the +word from Du-seen that would launch that barbed avalanche of death +upon us, when there broke from the wood beyond the swamp the sweetest +music that ever fell upon the ears of man--the sharp staccato of at +least two score rifles fired rapidly at will. Down went the Galu +and Kro-lu warriors like tenpins before that deadly fusillade. + +What could it mean? To me it meant but one thing, and that was +that Hollis and Short and the others had scaled the cliffs and made +their way north to the Galu country upon the opposite side of the +island in time to save Ajor and me from almost certain death. I +didn't have to have an introduction to them to know that the men +who held those rifles were the men of my own party; and when, a +few minutes later, they came forth from their concealment, my eyes +verified my hopes. There they were, every man-jack of them; and +with them were a thousand straight, sleek warriors of the Galu +race; and ahead of the others came two men in the garb of Galus. +Each was tall and straight and wonderfully muscled; yet they differed +as Ace might differ from a perfect specimen of another species. +As they approached the mire, Ajor held forth her arms and cried, +"Jor, my chief! My father!" and the elder of the two rushed in +knee-deep to rescue her, and then the other came close and looked +into my face, and his eyes went wide, and mine too, and I cried: +"Bowen! For heaven's sake, Bowen Tyler!" + +It was he. My search was ended. Around me were all my company +and the man we had searched a new world to find. They cut saplings +from the forest and laid a road into the swamp before they could +get us all out, and then we marched back to the city of Jor the +Galu chief, and there was great rejoicing when Ajor came home again +mounted upon the glossy back of the stallion Ace. + +Tyler and Hollis and Short and all the rest of us Americans nearly +worked our jaws loose on the march back to the village, and for +days afterward we kept it up. They told me how they had crossed +the barrier cliffs in five days, working twenty-four hours a day in +three eight-hour shifts with two reliefs to each shift alternating +half-hourly. Two men with electric drills driven from the dynamos +aboard the Toreador drilled two holes four feet apart in the face +of the cliff and in the same horizontal planes. The holes slanted +slightly downward. Into these holes the iron rods brought as +a part of our equipment and for just this purpose were inserted, +extending about a foot beyond the face of the rock, across these +two rods a plank was laid, and then the next shift, mounting to the +new level, bored two more holes five feet above the new platform, +and so on. + +During the nights the searchlights from the Toreador were kept +playing upon the cliff at the point where the drills were working, +and at the rate of ten feet an hour the summit was reached upon +the fifth day. Ropes were lowered, blocks lashed to trees at the +top, and crude elevators rigged, so that by the night of the fifth +day the entire party, with the exception of the few men needed to +man the Toreador, were within Caspak with an abundance of arms, +ammunition and equipment. + +From then on, they fought their way north in search of me, after +a vain and perilous effort to enter the hideous reptile-infested +country to the south. Owing to the number of guns among them, +they had not lost a man; but their path was strewn with the dead +creatures they had been forced to slay to win their way to the +north end of the island, where they had found Bowen and his bride +among the Galus of Jor. + +The reunion between Bowen and Nobs was marked by a frantic display +upon Nobs' part, which almost stripped Bowen of the scanty attire +that the Galu custom had vouchsafed him. When we arrived at the +Galu city, Lys La Rue was waiting to welcome us. She was Mrs. +Tyler now, as the master of the Toreador had married them the very +day that the search-party had found them, though neither Lys nor +Bowen would admit that any civil or religious ceremony could have +rendered more sacred the bonds with which God had united them. + +Neither Bowen nor the party from the Toreador had seen any sign +of Bradley and his party. They had been so long lost now that any +hopes for them must be definitely abandoned. The Galus had heard +rumors of them, as had the Western Kro-lu and Band-lu; but none had +seen aught of them since they had left Fort Dinosaur months since. + +We rested in Jor's village for a fortnight while we prepared for +the southward journey to the point where the Toreador was to lie +off shore in wait for us. During these two weeks Chal-az came up +from the Krolu country, now a full-fledged Galu. He told us that +the remnants of Al-tan's party had been slain when they attempted +to re-enter Kro-lu. Chal-az had been made chief, and when he rose, +had left the tribe under a new leader whom all respected. + +Nobs stuck close to Bowen; but Ace and Ajor and I went out upon +many long rides through the beautiful north Galu country. Chal-az +had brought my arms and ammunition up from Kro-lu with him; but my +clothes were gone; nor did I miss them once I became accustomed to +the free attire of the Galu. + +At last came the time for our departure; upon the following morning +we were to set out toward the south and the Toreador and dear old +California. I had asked Ajor to go with us; but Jor her father +had refused to listen to the suggestion. No pleas could swerve him +from his decision: Ajor, the cos-ata-lo, from whom might spring a +new and greater Caspakian race, could not be spared. I might have +any other she among the Galus; but Ajor--no! + +The poor child was heartbroken; and as for me, I was slowly realizing +the hold that Ajor had upon my heart and wondered how I should get +along without her. As I held her in my arms that last night, I +tried to imagine what life would be like without her, for at last +there had come to me the realization that I loved her--loved my +little barbarian; and as I finally tore myself away and went to +my own hut to snatch a few hours' sleep before we set off upon our +long journey on the morrow, I consoled myself with the thought that +time would heal the wound and that back in my native land I should +find a mate who would be all and more to me than little Ajor could +ever be--a woman of my own race and my own culture. + +Morning came more quickly than I could have wished. I rose and +breakfasted, but saw nothing of Ajor. It was best, I thought, that +I go thus without the harrowing pangs of a last farewell. The +party formed for the march, an escort of Galu warriors ready to +accompany us. I could not even bear to go to Ace's corral and bid +him farewell. The night before, I had given him to Ajor, and now +in my mind the two seemed inseparable. + +And so we marched away, down the street flanked with its stone +houses and out through the wide gateway in the stone wall which +surrounds the city and on across the clearing toward the forest +through which we must pass to reach the northern boundary of Galu, +beyond which we would turn south. At the edge of the forest I cast +a backward glance at the city which held my heart, and beside the +massive gateway I saw that which brought me to a sudden halt. It +was a little figure leaning against one of the great upright posts +upon which the gates swing--a crumpled little figure; and even +at this distance I could see its shoulders heave to the sobs that +racked it. It was the last straw. + +Bowen was near me. "Good-bye old man," I said. "I'm going back." + +He looked at me in surprise. "Good-bye, old man," he said, and +grasped my hand. "I thought you'd do it in the end." + +And then I went back and took Ajor in my arms and kissed the tears +from her eyes and a smile to her lips while together we watched +the last of the Americans disappear into the forest. + + + + + +I have made the following changes to the text: + +PAGE LINE ORIGINAL CHANGED TO + + 75 15 later latter + 108 14 in is + 123 24 the he + 131 13 plans planes + 131 28 new few + 132 24 Donosaur Dinosaur + + + +End of The Project Gutenberg Etext of People Out Of Time +by Edgar Rice Burroughs + diff --git a/old/poftm11.zip b/old/poftm11.zip Binary files differnew file mode 100644 index 0000000..ece1db6 --- /dev/null +++ b/old/poftm11.zip |