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diff --git a/old/63379-0.txt b/old/63379-0.txt deleted file mode 100644 index 21d3bae..0000000 --- a/old/63379-0.txt +++ /dev/null @@ -1,6088 +0,0 @@ -The Project Gutenberg EBook of From Monkey to Man, or, Society in the -Tertiary Age, by Austin Bierbower - -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/license - - -Title: From Monkey to Man, or, Society in the Tertiary Age - A Story of the Missing Link - -Author: Austin Bierbower - -Illustrator: H. R. Heaton - -Release Date: October 5, 2020 [EBook #63379] - -Language: English - -Character set encoding: UTF-8 - -*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK FROM MONKEY TO MAN, OR *** - - - - -Produced by Tim Lindell and the Online Distributed -Proofreading Team at https://www.pgdp.net (This file was -produced from images generously made available by The -Internet Archive/American Libraries.) - - - - - - - - - - -[Illustration: THE BATTLE IN THE SWAMP.] - - - - - FROM MONKEY TO MAN - OR - Society in the Tertiary Age - - A Story of the Missing Link - - SHOWING THE FIRST STEPS IN INDUSTRY, COMMERCE, GOVERNMENT, - RELIGION AND THE ARTS - - WITH AN ACCOUNT OF THE GREAT EXPEDITION FROM COCOANUT - HILL AND THE WARS IN ALLIGATOR SWAMP - - BY - AUSTIN BIERBOWER - Author of “The Virtues and Their Reasons,” “The Socialism of - Christ,” “The Morals of Christ,” Etc. - - Illustrated by H. R. HEATON - - CHICAGO - INGERSOLL BEACON CO - 1906 - - COPYRIGHT 1906 - BY - WM. H. MAPLE - CHICAGO - - M. A. DONOHUE & COMPANY - PRINTERS AND BINDERS - 407-429 DEARBORN STREET - CHICAGO - - - - -PUBLISHER’S PREFACE. - - -The extraordinary interest which this book has excited has induced -the publisher to issue a new and revised edition at a reduced price, -believing that, as it is the first attempt at a prehistoric novel, it -will have a wide reading. The subject, the characters and the period are -here for the first time introduced into fiction. - -The scenes are laid in the Tertiary Age when, according to the Darwinian -Theory, men were emerging from the Ape, and they portray the supposed -exploits of our ancestors at that stage of development. The author has -aimed to exhibit the features of the time—climate, foliage, animals, -etc.—as understood by Geologists and Biologists, and to be scientifically -accurate, with no more variations in proportion than are usual in -historic fiction. - -If Evolution is the true theory of man’s origin there is a long period -of forgotten history, covering thousands of centuries, during which men -lived and fought and learned, and this book seeks to revivify it and -make it realizable. In this period nearly all the arts and industries -were started, and the author suggests their crude origin in a variety -of episodes. The origin of arms, building, religion and government, the -first use of fire and clothing and the primitive form of many social and -business problems are indicated in the course of a simple story. - -In addition to its valuable scientific hints, the work is rich in -practical wisdom. It is also spiced throughout with a vein of quiet -humor which provokes mirth and makes it highly entertaining as well as -instructive. - -The illustrations by H. R. Heaton, an artist of national reputation, are -believed to be the best work of his genius. - - - - -LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS. - - - PAGE - - FRONTISPIECE - - SOSEE’S MOTHER ENCOUNTERS THE SNAKE 10 - - SHAMBOO’S RIDE 20 - - THE ROBBERS OF THE AMMI 31 - - “SEE BELOVED HOW THE MIGHTY FALL AT THE WORD OF SIMLEE - AND THE STROKE OF SHOOZOO” 36 - - “I HAVE BROUGHT ONE OF THE AMMI INSTEAD” 51 - - KOREE AND SOSEE ENCOUNTER A MONSTER 58 - - THE RESCUE OF ORLEE 69 - - THE BATTLE IN THE SWAMP 80 - - THE CATASTROPHE 97 - - THE FIGHT WITH THE FIRE-MONSTER 102 - - THE GREEDY OKO 120 - - POUNDER’S MISHAP 129 - - THE BATTLE BEGINS 139 - - KOREE’S CHALLENGE 149 - - THE RETREAT OF THE LALI 161 - - SOSEE WARNS THE AMMI 172 - - THE WOOD-EATING ANIMAL IN THE CAMP OF THE AMMI 191 - - THE AMMI BREAKING THROUGH THE ICE 198 - - SOSEE’S STRATEGY 212 - - RETURN OF THE AMMI TO COCOANUT HILL 225 - - - - -CHAPTER I. - - -[Illustration] - -About ninety years after the fight between the Monkeys and Snakes on -Cocoanut Hill, which was five hundred thousand years before our era, and -near the end of the Tertiary Age, Sosee was sitting on a limb sucking a -mango, when Koree came up in great consternation. - -“The fat baboon, from across the swamp,” he said, “has carried off Orlee -while her mother was hunting berries in the bushes.” - -“If you love me, Koree,” replied Sosee, uttering a wild scream, “you will -fetch her back, and bring me the tail of the baboon before night.” - -Sosee, who spoke these words, was a comely girl of twelve years, one of -the new race which had recently separated from the Apes, and would no -longer recognize them as equals. There was a hostility between the Apes -and these upstarts, and frequent incursions were made from the territory -of one on that of the other. - -The Apes had mostly retreated to the swamps and forests beyond, while -the new race were occupying the region about Cocoanut Hill, which their -ancestors of two generations before had taken, after many conflicts, from -the Apes, and from which they had driven the savage beasts. Here the -parents of Sosee were living, and here Sosee had grown to womanhood. - -The Cocoanut Hill region was a large tract, in what is now Southern -France, stretching from Alligator Swamp toward the mountains in the -distance. This section was plentifully covered with fruit trees—mangos, -palms, figs and limes; the under brush furnished berries and succulent -herbs; the waters of the swamp, which bordered this land, abounded in -fish, frogs, turtles, snakes and alligators; while great flocks of -ducks, geese and other water fowl frequented it at seasons. The forests -abounded in Uri, Woolly Oxen, Musk-Deer and other game. This abundance of -vegetable and animal life supplied food for the Ammi, as the new race was -called, and they would have lived in comfort but for the attacks of the -Apes beyond the water, who, keeping an envious eye on these fruits, often -came over the Swamp for food. - -Shortly before the event of which we speak, some apes in one of these -predatory incursions, were met by a larger number of the Ammi, when -several of the former were killed, and one, a small boy, taken prisoner. -The Ammi, expecting the Apes to attempt reprisals for this, kept a watch -at night, while during the day they guarded their children. - -Several times on the day mentioned signs of approaching Apes had been -seen. Gimbo, the grandfather of Sosee, who still persisted in walking on -four feet, (although the Ammi generally had begun to walk upright), said -he could scent the trail of the Apes, and had noticed the marks of one -walking on four feet. But Gimbo was deemed a garrulous old man, somewhat -unreliable, who claimed exceptional wisdom about the animals lower than -men, so that little attention was given to his warning. - -The mother of Orlee, however, had observed a sudden starting up of geese -from the swamp; but this also raised little suspicion, as they might -have been startled by a fox. Later, however, her keen sense of hearing -detected successive splashings in the water, as if made by plunging -alligators or turtles on the approach of an enemy. She was, accordingly, -slow to leave the spot where her child was playing—a girl of three years, -the sister of Sosee. - -Gaining confidence, however, with the restored silence of the swamp, -she took a club with which she usually warded off reptiles when hunting -berries, or killed them when requiring them for food; and, armed in this -way, she waded into the swamp, still keeping, however, in sight of her -child. - -As the berries were plentiful, she had soon eaten all she wanted, making -thereof her morning meal, when she was attracted by some luscious ones -farther in the swamp, which she hurried to get for the child. Having -filled her hands she was next startled by a huge snake of the Boa -species, which swung suddenly down from a tree, like a great vine and -sought to fasten its coils around her. - -[Illustration: SOSEE’S MOTHER ENCOUNTERS THE SNAKE.] - -Dropping the berries and uttering a wild scream, she seized the serpent, -and, sinking her nails and teeth in its flesh, began a fatal struggle -with it. The snake, which had fastened one coil about her leg, swung -round violently with the intention of encircling her waist. Her screams -startled the child, which began crying, and the two noises attracted the -attention of Koree, the lover of Sosee, who was sporting in a puddle near -by. - -Koree started to the rescue of the woman, but, in the tangled underbrush -could not find her; but, instead, he ran against a gigantic ape, which -had also been startled by the cries, and, in his fright, was running -about in confusion. This ape gave Koree a powerful blow with his fist, -and then ran out of the swamp to where the child was playing. Seizing the -child he next ran with it into the bushes and was out of sight. - -Too weak, or too frightened, to follow, Koree now hurried back to give -the alarm, when he encountered Sosee on the tree, as we have related. -Sosee’s screams and calls to Koree to rescue the child roused some men -near by, who now all rushed for the swamp. - -As they approached they saw the mother of the child emerging from the -bushes carrying the huge snake in triumph about her neck, part of which -was hanging down in long folds, pending from her arms. Never was a woman -prouder over a necklace of diamonds or pearls. Her bloody face and arms -added to the terror inspired by her Amazonian air, as, with a proud step, -she advanced to the men and threw down her trophy. - -Disburdened of her load, and sinking from the stimulant of battle, she -now became faint, through loss of blood, and was about to drop to the -ground; for, in the struggle with the serpent, she had been severely -bitten and wrenched, so that her own blood was mingled with that of the -reptile on her body. - -As she was about to faint away, however, she observed that her child was -gone, when all the excitement returned which had attended her in battle, -and, on hearing of its capture, she sent up a wail which echoed through -the forest, and flew into a rage that terrified the bystanders. - - - - -CHAPTER II. - - -[Illustration] - -The events related in the preceding chapter occurred, as we have said, -about ninety years after the fight between the Monkeys and Snakes on -Cocoanut Hill. As the time of the Ammi is reckoned from this fight, we -shall go back, for awhile, to the affairs which immediately preceded it. - -The Apes of all kinds had, till then, been roving promiscuously over the -country along with wild beasts of every description. The forests being -free to all, and likewise the swamps, there was a scene like that of the -jungles of Central Africa to-day. Land and water teemed with life, and -were animated with struggles for the food of the region. Gigantic lions, -tigers, woolly rhinoceroses, mastodons, cave-bears and other savage -beasts sported in their favorite element. Serpents were particularly -abundant, especially in the great Alligator Swamp, from which they -emerged to the high country to catch rabbits and other game. The Apes, -which were mostly vegetarians, did not at first interfere with the more -savage beasts hunting in these forests; so that there was an endless -variety of animals in the region of which we speak. - -The Apes at this time lived mostly on trees, especially at night. This -was necessary on account of the more savage beasts which roamed over -the ground. When game became scarce the tigers and some other animals -attacked the Apes, and often killed them. The weaker animals which could -not climb the trees were generally in danger of becoming the prey of the -stronger ones. - -This arboreal life became in time irksome to the Apes, many of whom -had made some progress in methods of living and hunting. These were, -accordingly, anxious to acquire a right to the ground, and security in -its possession. They had become so large that a fall from a tree was a -serious matter. Nor was a tree always convenient to climb when they were -in danger. - -They could not, however, come to the ground while so many savage beasts -occupied it. A sleeping ape was liable to suffer death if met by a tiger, -especially in recent years when many fights occurred between the two. The -Apes, accordingly, conceived the project of ridding the country of the -more dangerous animals. - -There were two principal species of Apes at this time, the Ammi, who -afterwards became known as men, and the Lali, who were the enemies of the -Ammi on the other side of the swamp; and, though there had come to be -marked differences between the two, (of which we shall presently speak,) -they were, at this time, both living together as Apes (the Man-Apes -of Biology), and were alike interested in ridding the country of the -stronger beasts. - -A council was, accordingly, called to take measures for their common -welfare. In this council they gave their respective views without those -formalities which now attend such gatherings. They spoke mainly in -gestures and growls, which constituted all there was of language then, -(articulate speech not having been developed beyond a few broken sounds). -One, Shamboo, believed to be the great-grandfather of Sosee, was the -acknowledged leader of the Apes, and he directed the deliberations of -this assembly. Speaking in the manner indicated, this Ape harangued the -multitude to the following effect: - -“Tailed Apes, upright Apes, Baboons and Monkeys of low degree: I am tired -living on trees. I am getting too old and fat to climb, and cannot go up -in the air every time I want to sleep. My eyes are bad, and can’t tell a -rotten limb from a sound one. Only two days ago, while eating a cocoanut, -the limb broke on which I was sitting, and I fell to the ground, striking -a porcupine; and there has been a sick monkey ever since. Just before the -big rain I was chased up a tree by a hyena, when, before I got out of -reach, he seized my tail, already reduced to a stump, and I had to let -go of either the tree or my tail. I stuck to the tree, but to-day I am -a tailless Ape! Why should the ground be conceded to tigers and snakes? -The earth was made for monkeys. Our food is mostly on the ground, and it -is easier to walk on a level than up and down. We can run faster than -we can climb. We cannot fly, like the birds, and there is no easy way -for such big folks to get up a tree. But we dare not come to the ground. -If we do we must fight some brute. The tigers want the earth; and we -can’t afford to maintain perpetual war. I am, therefore, for peace, and -so favor killing off our enemies. If the forces of the trees will but -combine, dropping their disputes about the milk that is in the cocoanut, -they can conquer the forces of the earth. Resolve, then, monkeys all, to -make a fight for the land, and not be so often found up a stump. True -to your ape-hood, join me in an oath to drive out the ground-beasts. -Everything in this valley will then be ours. We shall have the plants -and berries, and frogs, and little fishes. We can then lie down to sleep -without falling off, and run about without getting tired. Whoever loves -monkeykind will, therefore, follow my advice. Now, all of you who are -resolved to drive out the beasts which claim this land, swear with me by -scratching your top rib while I crack this butternut and eat the kernel.” - -The eloquence of Shamboo gained the assembly to his proposition. Every -rib got a scratch, and the solemnity of the hour was felt in every -breast. An aged priest of the Mountain Apes bowed low his head, breathing -a blessing on the undertaking; and from that hour the savage beasts of -Cocoanut Hill were doomed. - - - - -CHAPTER III. - - -[Illustration] - -The plan of attack on the beasts was two-fold. One method was to -associate together and make a combined assault by two’s or more, -according to the strength of their antagonists. The other was to get on -trees and spring upon the enemy when asleep or at other disadvantage. In -this way they hoped to so worry the larger beasts that they would quit -the region of their own accord. - -This coöperation was important as being the beginning of association -among Apes. By uniting in two’s and three’s for attack or defense they -learned to confederate, and so laid the foundations of society. Till -that time they had roamed the forests and jungles solitary, each one -hunting alone his food, like the tigers, and forming no lasting or -frequent attachments. They met the opposite sex casually at a spring -or in the fruit regions. They did not recognize their own children, or -care for them except for a few years after birth, until they could roam -for themselves. Only occasionally did they meet for a common purpose, -and then only for a little while. They were not gregarious, though they -sometimes met in large numbers where food was abundant, and became -slightly acquainted. They chattered or fought while together, and then -parted to see one another perhaps no more. - -Having now, however, formed a League of the Apes, offensive and -defensive, these animals, who disputed with the tigers the right to be -called the lords of the land, soon became acquainted with one another, -and therefore learned to like each other better. They found that they -had many common interests, and there sprang up warm attachments between -them. Their mutual disagreements disappeared before their disagreements -with the tigers. They learned to help one another that they might destroy -a common enemy, founding their unity on their common hatred. Many -sentiments were, accordingly, developed, to which ape-hood had before -been a stranger. Hearts were touched where before there were thought to -be only stomachs, and a new sentiment—love—was awakened in the race; and -when they parted after a night’s watch, or fight, they often presented -one another with a cocoanut or bull-frog. Unselfishness gradually took -the place of unrestrained competition, and a monkey etiquette grew up and -became recognized. Some of the apes became noticeably polite, especially -to the opposite sex, and there was soon quite a little social intercourse -between them. They would go out by two’s and three’s for food or water, -as well as for a fight, and thus they learned to labor together, as well -as fight together. - -Nor was this all. Having got together in a league, it was not easy to -separate them. They came together to stay, and they stayed to co-operate -in many measures besides their own defense. After their wars certain -industries sprang up, among which was the damming of part of the Swamp -(where it was entered by a stream), so as to form a lake, in which they -could with more convenience drink and wash. Having tasted the sweets -of association, they wished, in short, to remain in society; and when -subsequently the younger ones became restive, and tried to regain the -liberty of independent or single life, the older heads compelled them to -adhere to the social compact. - -Scarcely had they formed their alliance for war, when they set out for -the enemy. Their chief foe was the tigers and snakes, because these were -most numerous, although there were some lions, pachyderms, bears, and -other savage beasts, of which also they meant to rid the country. One -proposed that they all start out together, saying that while they would -thus be fighting as a whole, the enemy, which would be fighting singly, -could be easily overcome. Shamboo opposed this plan, however, as likely -to attract too much attention, and, perhaps, to cause the tigers also to -confederate. “Let us,” he said, “indeed, fight each enemy singly; but it -does not require more than three apes to kill one tiger.” - -They accordingly broke up into small bands, and started on a tiger -hunt. On the first day of the War of the Beasts, a body of three, led -by Shamboo, climbed a Yew tree near the Swamp, where a great tiger was -known to come to slake his thirst. It was agreed, or rather laid down by -Shamboo as the method of attack, that when the tiger should pass under -the tree, one of them, the youngest and strongest, should drop upon the -tiger’s back, and fasten his jaws in his neck, when the rest would follow -and dispatch their victim. - -[Illustration: SHAMBOO’S RIDE.] - -Scarcely had this been resolved upon, when the tiger appeared, marching -slowly toward their tree. He was carrying a sheep in his mouth, and his -great show of muscular strength and fierce expression seemed to despise -danger. The ape who had been chosen to drop on the tiger drew back in -fear, and told Shamboo to do that part himself. - -No time was to be lost, and, before the words of the timid ape were -fully uttered, Shamboo dropped upon the tiger. His great weight crushed -the beast to the ground, and compelled it to let go of the sheep. The -tiger immediately got up, however, and, not knowing what to do, in his -embarrassment, started on a full run. Shamboo clung to his back, and away -they both went, like John Gilpin, dashing over hill and dale and through -jungle and forest. The deer fled at their approach, squirrels ran up the -trees, a flock of ducks started from a pool near by, and the flight of -birds and beasts from their path was like the stampede which precedes a -prairie fire. Shamboo’s teeth were fixed in the tiger’s neck, and his -feet like spurs were sunk in his sides. - -So they ran, and the earth rapidly receded behind them. The other two -apes followed, but at a distance, so that the tiger and Shamboo were -practically alone, and must soon, it seemed, try their strength in single -combat. The tiger, however, was too scared to take an inventory of what -he was carrying, while Shamboo’s thoughts were divided equally between -how to hold on and how to let go. The tiger himself soon solved this -problem for Shamboo by running through a hole in a thicket which was too -small to admit both, so that Shamboo was knocked off. He fell into a -cluster of bushes, and the fall was so violent as to cause him to turn -several summersets, so that he did not know in which direction he had -been going. The tiger, lightened of his load, but not of his scare, kept -on, and was soon out of sight and out of this story. - -Shamboo picked himself up and, looking round, spied the other two -apes coming slowly toward him. He limped back to them with an air of -disappointment, rather than of suffering, and, without uttering a word, -fell upon the younger ape, who had shown cowardice, and killed him for -his breach of military discipline in disobeying orders. - -The fame of that ride and that fight remains to the time of this story, -though there are different versions of it among the Ammi and the Apes -beyond the Swamp. - -And long subsequent to this time, when the descendants of these Apes got -to riding on the backs of horses and cattle, there was a legend ascribing -the origin of the uses of beasts of burden to this unwilling ride of -Shamboo; and in the mythology of the later Apes Shamboo became the god of -Domestication. - - - - -CHAPTER IV. - - -[Illustration] - -In the course of the contest with the tigers, which lasted several years, -many improvements were made in the art of warfare, which afterwards -served the Apes in time of peace. After the experience of Shamboo and -others, who attacked unarmed the savage beasts, they found it advisable -to fight at a distance. Taking their position on trees, which was done -for safety, the problem was how to reach the enemy. They commonly -showered cocoanuts and other large fruits upon them, which, while -annoying to small animals, had little effect on tigers. They next carried -stones up the trees for missiles, which they dropped with some effect. In -time they became expert at throwing, and could strike a tiger’s head ten -paces off. Shoozoo claimed to have killed a hyena at a distance of many -alligators’ lengths with a rock larger than his head; but Shoozoo had a -reputation for lying, which was greatly developed during the war. - -The Apes also broke off branches of trees, with which they pounded the -savage beasts, not only by throwing them from the trees as missiles, but -by using them as clubs, until they became skilled in the art of pounding, -as well as of making clubs. When catamounts, bears and other climbing -beasts attacked them on the trees, and fought paw to paw with them, they -used the stones as knives, and often cut their assailants fatally, having -learned to select sharp stones for this purpose, and, in time, to sharpen -them specially. Before the war they had used stones only to crack nuts. -But now they learned both to use them for many other purposes, and to -make them into the size and shape which best suited them. - -The first manufactures of the Apes were thus of military implements, -their necessity being the mother of invention. In time of peace, however, -they found new uses for these implements, like their descendents who -afterwards beat their swords into plowshares and their spears into -pruning-hooks. The missiles with which they had attacked the tigers they -soon used for hunting, and in time for building. When they came down from -the trees, and lived more on the earth, they knocked cocoanuts down, -instead of climbing after them; they killed birds and rabbits by throwing -stones at them, instead of lying in wait for them, and they speared fish -with their clubs which they had learned to sharpen. They could thus act -at a greater distance, and so had more power, both to defend themselves -from wild beasts, and to obtain food. - -Shoozoo, the liar just mentioned, told some wonderful stories of a stone -which he sharpened and the exploits he performed with it. He saw a lion, -he said, sleeping at the foot of a tree, when, throwing the stone, he cut -the tree from its stump, which, falling on the lion, killed him; and he -would have brought the dead lion to verify the story, but it was so big -that all the monkeys of Cocoanut Hill could not have carried it away; but -he showed the sharpened stone as evidence. - -He related also that when hunting owls at night, after killing all -that were in the forest, and having nothing more to throw at, he threw -his stone at the moon, and hit it with such force that he cut off a -piece; and, as evidence of this, he pointed to the moon, which was, -indeed, seen to have a large piece gone, so that many Apes believed him -for once, though they knew he was habitually a liar. For the evidence -of their senses was generally deemed enough for the Apes. Shamboo, -however, doubted the story and asked Shoozoo why he did not bring home -the other piece of the moon. “When I cut it off,” he replied, “it fell -into the Swamp and was swallowed by an alligator. I expect to catch that -alligator, and then I will show you the rest of the moon.” - -The Apes of Cocoanut Hill, however, who placed little confidence in -Shoozoo’s stories, placed less in his promises; although the next -generation, which accepted him as the founder of their religion, believed -him to be a better man, and accepted his stories as history and his -promises as prophecy; so that what was incredible to contemporaries -became indisputable to posterity; and the traditions that gathered -about his name were sufficient to silence the doubts in a generation -later which they had raised in a generation before. In course of time -the bigger stories only gained credence, the rest being forgotten; so -that what was received with most distrust was handed down with most -confidence; and the farther they got from the time of their performance -the easier it was thought to be to get at the truth about them. - -For many generations every alligator that was killed was opened in -order to find the moon; and, though it was often claimed to be found, -there was never as much confidence in the story of its recovery as of -its loss; for the Apes early learned to distinguish between religious -stories, and only accepted those for which there was adequate evidence. -The uninterrupted testimony of the fathers, which had come down in -regular succession, and had never been doubted, was deemed the best -evidence. Apes have accordingly differed about the incidentals of the -story; for many accounts have come down about the details, which are not -to be reconciled; but as to the great essentials—that the holy Shoozoo -actually did knock off a piece of the moon, and that an alligator -swallowed it—there is a substantial agreement; and as often as the moon, -in generations later, appeared in crescent form, the festival of the Holy -Crescent was celebrated by throwing sharpened stones in the air in honor -of the great exploit of their Founder, Shoozoo. - -But, though Shoozoo, who passed in one generation for a liar, and in -the next for a God, left a questionable heritage to the Apes, they -still retained out of his age something of substantial value. The use -of implements was invented, and the arts of making and using them were -handed down to Monkeys and Men. - - - - -CHAPTER V. - - -[Illustration] - -After the savage beasts had been driven from the region of Cocoanut -Hill, and the Apes had come down from the trees, and were habitually on -the ground, they found themselves encountering new dangers. The snakes -were troublesome. The snakes had, indeed, been troublesome before, but -it was mainly when they climbed the trees for birds’ nests or fruits. -The Apes did not then encounter them so often, and amid the greater -dangers from the four-footed beasts, did not find it necessary to make -war against them. But now, when the Apes walked more on the ground, they -met the snakes oftener, and under more disagreeable circumstances. The -snakes, moreover, had greatly multiplied since the destruction of the -savage beasts, many of which devoured, or fought with, snakes, or else -lived on the same food. With the departure, accordingly, of the enemies -of the serpents, and their increase of sustenance, the serpents became -powerful, and at last threatened to drive the Apes from the region. It -became dangerous to walk abroad, especially near the Swamp. At night -they disturbed the slumbers of the Apes. Shoozoo declared that he once -found two in his ear when he awoke, and that he had swallowed some big -ones during the night, although Shamboo declared contemptuously that he -only had worms. - -Many precautions were, from time to time, taken against the snakes. Some -of the Apes persisted in still sleeping in the trees. Most of them, -however, sought holes in the ground and caves in the rocks, which they -fortified by piling brush and earth at the entrance; while others, not -finding holes conveniently at hand, dug them and covered them with brush, -so as to form a mound. The race had thus begun to build, and one of the -first arts—architecture—was founded. The home originated in a fight -against the serpent. - -The snakes, however, soon attacked these homes, and all the more eagerly -because of the food stored in them. For the Apes found that they could -put their structures to many uses not before known. They would hold their -provisions, as well as themselves, and would protect such provisions -from the weather, as well as from the snakes, and so preserve them for -a longer time. Their homes accordingly became store-houses, and this -facility for keeping provisions by storage stimulated the collection of -them. Instead of gathering only what they wanted to eat at the time, the -Apes now picked up all they could find, and placed it in their dug-outs. -They soon learned to allow nothing to go to waste, and became economical. -They even collected when they did not want anything, from the mere fact -that they could store it, and thus became provident. They believed they -might want in the future, and so often stored large quantities; for -some Apes early became avaricious. They got in time to be as proud of -their possessions as of their homes, and often gathered from a feeling -of ambition. Shoozoo claimed that he had enough fruits in his mound to -feed all the Apes of Cocoanut Hill for a lifetime; which nobody of that -generation believed, and nobody of the next doubted. - -These great quantities of fruits, we say, attracted the snakes, who were -soon found more plentiful about the homes than about the swamps. Wealth -always has its enemies, and a snake no more than a man, will work for -what he can get more easily. It was thought easier to get cocoanuts in -Shoozoo’s dug-out than by climbing a tree. - -One day an ape, who had made a large collection, found, on returning -home, that all his store was gone. The snakes had broken in and eaten -what they could, and destroyed the rest by half eating it. The only sign -of the thieves was an old snake which had eaten so much that he could not -get away, and lay, like a drunken man, helpless on the ground. The ape -soon dispatched him; but that did not satisfy the ape. He was indignant, -and in his sense of suffering wrong we have the first appearance of -the ethical sentiment. The sense of wrong in others appears before we -recognize it in ourselves. The snakes did not feel the wrong; nor did the -same monkey when afterwards he went to steal some of Shoozoo’s fruit (and -found none), although he felt an indignation at Shoozoo that might be -called an incipient sense of the wrong of falsehood. He wanted to charge -Shoozoo with lying; but as that would have disclosed his own theft, or -attempt at it, he suppressed his indignation in his prudence. - -[Illustration: THE ROBBERS OF THE AMMI.] - -Other depredations were committed by the snakes, so that almost every -ape soon had a property grievance. Added to this was a growing personal -animosity between the Apes and the Snakes. As they had frequent contests -over the fruits, they had learned to fight, and so to hate, each other, -and finally to look upon each other as public enemies. - -Nor was all the fault with the snakes. For as soon as the Apes got -to accumulating, they scoured the swamps as well as the hills for -provisions, and so met the Snakes in their own element, who had to fight -for the ungathered fruits as well as the gathered. In fact, through their -strongly developed acquisitiveness, the Apes had drained the country so -generally of its productions, that there was not enough left to support -the Snakes, so that the latter had to become criminals and attack the -gathered stores. Whenever the rich gather up everything so close as to -leave nothing for the poor, the latter will turn criminals, whether they -be snakes or men, and will steal from the rich, whether these be men or -monkeys. - -There, accordingly, sprang up an antagonism between the Snakes and the -Monkeys, which had all the bitterness of class feeling, as well as of -race prejudice, and soon an irrepressible conflict was impending. The -Monkeys demanded the extirpation of the Snakes as violently as they had, -in the preceding campaign, demanded that of the tigers; and from one end -of the highlands to the other was heard the cry, “The snakes must go.” - -“Steppers and crawlers,” said Shamboo, “cannot live in the same country. -If there is anything a monkey hates it is to tramp on a snake. Only -to-day one bit me in the heel, and to-morrow I shall crush his head. -Enmity is declared between our race and theirs. A snake in the grass can -never be loved by our seed; and so, until there shall be no more Snakes, -or else no more Monkeys, the conflict must go on. We came down from the -trees to the ground only to find others who had got still closer to the -ground, and were climbing the land as we had climbed the trees; and it is -a question whether belly or feet shall walk the earth. When the Apes got -down off the trees they got up on their feet; and we do not mean to again -walk through life on four feet to look for snakes.” - - - - -CHAPTER VI. - - -[Illustration] - -The fight with the snakes, which now began, was not remarkable except for -the stories to which it gave rise. The reptiles were nearly all driven -from the country before it was over, although many of them took refuge -in the Swamp. But many tales of prowess were related of that war, which -made it famous in after times, and caused it to be the event from which -subsequent time was reckoned. Shoozoo claimed to have killed more snakes -and bigger snakes than any of the rest, and, as none could boast much of -their actual exploits, which were small compared with those claimed by -Shoozoo, they all took to lying, and thus started the habit of making -snake stories, which has come down to their descendants. These accounts -were so great that the next generation, which was the first to believe -them, ascribed marvelous powers to the heroes of this war, and so made -it the commencement of an epoch, as well as preserved the stories, with -additions, for their future theology. - -“Why do you not,” asked Simlee, a young gorilla for whom Shoozoo had -formed an attachment, “bring home one of those big snakes of which you -kill so many, and proudly lay it at my feet?” - -“Is it not enough,” retorted Shoozoo, “that I bring home the story of it? -The honor that comes from snakes is not in having them, but in killing -them.” - -“But I want the proof of both your exploits and your love,” replied she; -“the other baboons bring something to their loved ones, and the girls -are all taunting me with your failures and your neglect. I am pining for -snakes.” - -Shoozoo felt embarrassed, but, being always ready with a promise when he -lacked an achievement, said: - -“I will bring you the great dragon of the swamp, the winged alligator -that rules these waters and darkens the sun when he flies.” - -“I would rather have plain snakes,” she said; “I would entwine them in my -hair, and, like the girls of Jo and Kibboo, drape them as trophies about -my neck.” - -“Never doubt my love,” he replied, “You shall be ensnaked; and my -conquests and your adornments will be the pride of all monkeydom.” - -Simlee, thus reassured, ran laughing up a tree, while Shoozoo departed to -achieve, or invent, fame. - -Arming himself with a club and a vivid imagination he went out, like Don -Quixote, for snakes and glory. - -[Illustration: “SEE, BELOVED, HOW THE MIGHTY FALL AT THE WORD OF SIMLEE -AND THE STROKE OF SHOOZOO.”] - -He had not gone far when he encountered an enormous snake, the first real -one he had found since the war, notwithstanding his stories, and one -which would, indeed, have delighted Simlee and given Shoozoo fame as its -slayer, had he brought it home. But, instead of Shoozoo making for the -snake, the snake made for Shoozoo. Back he turned excitedly, and there -was a long race between the snake and the monkey, the monkey keeping -ahead and gaining; and long after the snake ceased to follow Shoozoo -continued to run. At last, however, Shoozoo panting and almost out of -breath, climbed a tree, and looked about to take in the situation. And, -though he did not see the snake, he nevertheless would not come down, -but remained in the tree till night, when he sneaked home by a route -different from that by which he came. - -On nearing the place where he had left Simlee in the morning, and -wondering what account he should give of his day’s adventure, he found -another huge snake lying in his path. He started back in fright; but, -assuring himself that it was dead, he approached with courage. “This,” he -said, “is my opportunity; it will both satisfy Simlee and astonish the -rest.” And so, shouldering the snake he bore it proudly back to Simlee, -and laid it at her feet with these words: - -“See, beloved, how the mighty fall at the word of Simlee and the stroke -of Shoozoo!” - -Simlee leaped from the tree with glee, and taking up the snake, called to -the other girls who were sitting among the branches or lying about the -mounds, to witness her good fortune. - -“That’s the same snake,” replied one, “that was brought here two days ago -by Kibboo, and thrown away this morning because it had begun to smell.” - -At this Simlee grew angry, and flew at the girl with open jaws, tearing -her hair and beating her face; and there would have been as hot a fight -between the women as between the men and the snakes, but for the return -of the warriors with their trophies, when the curiosity of the female -apes, which was greater than their anger, put an end to the quarrel, and -they all ran to possess themselves of the snakes for ornaments. - - - - -CHAPTER VII. - - -[Illustration] - -We have said that the stories of the exploits of this war have been -handed down in the religion of the Apes. This is due not so much to the -achievements of the heroes as to the accounts of them by Shoozoo, who -was much more active in relating battles than in fighting them; so that, -as the heroes of the Trojan War owe more to Homer than to their own -prowess, (for many great men lived before Agamemnon, whose exploits are -forgotten for want of an imaginative historian); so the heroes of the -fight about Cocoanut Hill are chiefly indebted to the Homer of the Apes -for his reports of them. As gods, demi-gods, heroes and fair women rose -from a ten days’ skirmish on the banks of the Scamander, so divinities, -good and bad, had their origin in the Cocoanut Hill battles by reason -of a good telling. Shoozoo was, fortunately, unlike Homer, both warrior -and historian, and so, like Xenophon and Cæsar, made himself the chief -character in his accounts. The other apes nearly all drop out of history, -and their deeds are ascribed to him, who at the time of this story, was -deemed the chief character in that conflict; showing that for future fame -a good liar is better than a good fighter. - -Thus the driving out of the snakes from Cocoanut Hill came in time to -be wholly attributed to Shoozoo, so that, like St. Patrick, he was -honored for the entire service of their expulsion. The great dragon, or -flying alligator, of which he only spoke to Simlee as an excuse, was, -in time, believed to have been actually killed by him, as a primitive -St. George. The snake that had entered the mound of one of the apes, -and gorged himself with its treasured fruits, and which was killed -by the ape, was alleged to have been slain by Shoozoo while guarding -great treasures in a cave, as Siegfried slew the Nibelungen dragon. The -expulsion of the snakes from Cocoanut Hill found its way into various -stories about a primitive pair of apes—Shoozoo and Simlee—whose fruit -was stolen by snakes, for which the snakes were driven from the country; -reversing the story of Adam and Eve, who took the fruit from the snake -and were themselves expelled, instead of the snake. Had Adam been his own -biographer, like Shoozoo, the story of Eden might have been reversed. - -The long contest and great enmity engendered between the Monkeys and -the Snakes, also caused in time the serpent to be taken to represent -everything bad, and this conflict came in the Apian Mythology to be -represented as the conflict between good and evil, in which a great -serpent fought with Shoozoo and was overcome by him, but not altogether -slain; so that, as in the Persian Theology, the contest between good and -evil still went on, although Shoozoo was expected to come again in the -great future, and put the serpent entirely under his feet. - -Also, as the serpent came to represent evil, it was believed that the -great winged alligator, with which Shoozoo fought, was the King of Evil, -or Devil, and, that, being the chief of serpents, he led all assaults -against the interests of the Apes. He was pictured with wings, tail, and -great claws, and was supposed to be the power that ruled over Alligator -Swamp, or the Land of the Bad. Apes frightened their children by saying -that the great flying Alligator would come up out of the Swamp and devour -them. Simian demonology thus had its birth. Like Juno springing from the -head of Jove, it issued full grown out of the imagination of Shoozoo, -with an alligator for its only foundation in fact. - -It will thus be seen that the fight between the Monkeys and Snakes on -Cocoanut Hill, which was important in the history, became more important -in the mythology of the Apes, and, from its prominence in their profane -and sacred traditions, it is natural that the Apes should make it the -commencement of an epoch. - - - - -CHAPTER VIII. - - -[Illustration] - -After the Snakes had been driven from the region of Cocoanut Hill, and -the land thus rid of both wild beasts and reptiles, the Apes, who had now -undisputed possession, got to fighting among themselves for the land. -Those, therefore, who had united for defense now divided for conquest. - -There were two principal varieties of Apes, as we have said,—the Ammi -from whom the Men are descended, and the Lali, who, while resembling the -former, were inferior in manners, and more closely resembled the present -Orang-outang. They had both sprung from the same original stock, and, -until several generations before, lived together in a more southerly -country. At length they separated, (while still in the south), the Ammi -going eastward, and the Lali westward, like the separation between -Abraham and Lot. - -Being thus separated, and so removed from mutual influence, they soon -diverged in customs. The Ammi, under more favorable circumstances, began -to walk erect, to live more on the ground, to find many uses for their -hands, and to make some progress in speech. The Lali, who had wandered -into a less hospitable country, made no progress whatever, but rather -degenerated; so that when, generations later, the two varieties met again -on Cocoanut Hill, there were marked differences between them. - -They had both come to the Cocoanut Hill country in a great migration of -monkeys from the South, the Ammi coming from the southeast and the Lali -from the southwest. This migration was caused by the failure of fruits -in the south on account of some cataclysm in Nature of which we have no -reliable accounts; and monkeys of every kind came north, so that there -were soon all the varieties of which we have spoken in the Cocoanut Hill -region. And this failure of fruits, we may add, was a principal cause of -the providence of the Monkeys in laying up stores; for they were anxious -that a second famine should not occur like that in the land from which -they had come. - -These apes, having therefore met again, met with differences such as did -not separate them in the south country; and, though they imitated one -another to some extent (the Lali picking up some of the sounds of the -Ammi, and so acquiring by degrees the habit of speaking, and also walking -at times upright and using their hands), there were, nevertheless, -irremovable differences between the two; and, though they made common -cause as long as they had to fight tigers and snakes, they again asserted -their differences with the return of peace, and so found it impossible to -assimilate. - -In view of this incongeniality the Ammi in time were found associating -wholly among themselves, and the Lali likewise among themselves. -Jealousies and suspicions arose between the two, and frequently fights. -Class distinctions gave rise to class controversies, and finally to class -wars. The Lali were soon hated as much as the snakes by the Ammi, who -conceived the project of driving them from the country; and the Lali, in -turn, resolved also to get the country for themselves. - -After several conflicts, in which now one party and then the other was -successful, and after several temporary compromises, in which they tried -to live together, the Lali, partly vanquished and partly persuaded, -consented to withdraw to the lands beyond the Swamp, leaving the Ammi in -possession of the Cocoanut Hill region. - -The separation, however, was no settlement. The Lali claimed the land -which they did not take, and hoped to get in the future what they were -willing to surrender for the present. The two parties stood, like Germany -and France over Alsace and Lorraine, growling much, but doing little. -Occasionally they made incursions into each other’s territory, and -carried away some fruit or provisions; but, though they talked chiefly -of war, they lived mainly in peace. Separated by snakes and swamps, they -were kept at peace by the difficulty of coming together. The danger of -crossing, and the delay in going around the Swamp, were too great for war. - -This was the condition and situation of the two forces which occupied the -world as known to our ancestors at the time of this story. - -Having made this digression on the antiquities of the Apes and a bit -of their history, in which we have seen the origin of their religion, -government and industries, and of many of their customs, we shall now -return to the scenes beginning this story, which are nearly a century -later. - - - - -CHAPTER IX. - - -[Illustration] - -Sosee had come down from the tree in which she received the news of the -rape of Orlee, described in Chapter I, and, though she had given orders -to Koree to bring back the child, she did not herself remain inactive. -She rushed into the crowd, and, calling upon all, with wild screams, to -rescue the child, went herself into the Swamp, and without any notion -of where she was going, wandered about aimlessly till night, being -completely lost. She found her way back only by the light of the moon, -whose position in the heavens was some guide in her wanderings. Nor would -she have returned at all, had she not hoped that some one else had, in -the mean while, brought back the child. - -On returning to the place from which she had started, she was distressed -to learn that Orlee was not found, and she could scarcely be restrained -from immediately starting again in pursuit of her. As Koree, however, -had not yet returned, having searched farther and later than any, except -Sosee, she hoped that he, inspired by her love, would come back with -success. She had most confidence in him because she had most love for -him, believing that what most pleased her fancy would best serve her -purpose. - -Her first disappointment in love was when she saw Koree return without -the child; for in this crisis she felt more for her sister than for her -lover, the newly lost being ever dearer than the long loved. Koree had -failed to meet her expectation, or rather her desire; and in times of -disappointment the little that is lacking outweighs all that is not. - -“You have failed to bring back Orlee and the tail of the fat baboon,” she -said, “Despair of my love till you fetch me both.” - -This was spoken in the half-articulate manner already explained, as was -the balance of the conversation (which we translate, however, into modern -expression). - -“What all the race of the Ammi could not do,” he replied, “you ought not -to blame your lover for not accomplishing.” - -“The love of one,” she retorted, “can do more than the indifference of -many. If Orlee is ever found it will be by love, and not by numbers.” - -“I will yet fetch her back,” he said; “love’s work is not exhausted in -one effort, but requires time for its fruit. She will come in response to -your love acting through mine. Neither man nor monkey shall defeat me, or -excel me, in this task.” - -“Go, then,” she said, “and I will go with you. Love co-operates, and -never commands only.” - -“I will go,” he replied: “and not care whether I return. With Sosee at my -side, I could roam forever, indifferent whither we come, so we be still -together. Had we not gone alone before we would not have returned without -Orlee; but we came back to see each other. Love left behind defeats its -own purpose sent before. If we separate we will be hunting each other, -instead of keeping our thoughts on Orlee.” - -“Let us then go,” she said, “and keep ourselves and our purposes united, -and resolve not to return till we come with her.” - -“I will go; for then will I have everything with me, and nothing to come -back for.” - -“If you go for my company only,” she said, “and not for the child, you -will soon have neither. To be my lover you must want what I want, and not -merely want me; and if you do not get it you will soon be without me, for -love must achieve success to be rewarded with love.” - -“I want more your wish than my own, and will give up everything for it.” - -“Except me.” - -“Yes, and you even.” - -“You mean thing! I won’t go with you.” - -“Well,” he replied, “I won’t go alone.” - -“You don’t care for me a bit,” she said. - -“You only care for me to serve your purpose,” he retorted. - -“I will get Kibboo to go with me,” she next said. - -“He may go,” replied Koree, “and I will stay with Alee till you return. -She is a better climber, and can run faster than you.” - -“Boo! hoo! she has no hair on her back, and is meaner than you. She ran -from a little snake which I could bite in two.” - -“But she loves me, and never quarrels with me.” - -“She don’t love you; she only hates me, and wants to make you do so. She -loves Ki, and picked the fleas off him when he came from the Swamp this -evening.” - -“Do you love me, Sosee?” he next asked with more tenderness. - -“I won’t tell you,” she replied, sobbing. - -“Will you go with me, and stay with me?” - -“I never said I wouldn’t.” - -Here followed a long pause, during which Sosee sobbed and sighed, and -Koree looked about in his mind for some excuse for making peace without -seeming to want to. Sosee came to his relief, however, with a question. - -“Koree?” - -“Well?” - -“Will you go with me to find Orlee?” - -Sosee, too proud to ask for his love, had asked for his service. - -“Yes,” he replied, glad to give both, “and will not come back till we -find her.” - -“Won’t that be delightful! to hunt and find her together!” - -“Yes,” he replied, “and let us start to-night, and before morning we may -find her.” - -But night and weariness had settled down upon them, and as the older men -and women had determined to wait till morning before recommencing the -search, the two lovers concluded to do likewise, saying that they could -then search with greater vigor. - -They then walked awhile, though weary, in the moonlight, and discoursed -of love and Orlee, he speaking of his devotion and she of her confidence -that he would bring back her sister. - -“How approvingly,” he said “the monkey in the moon looks down upon our -love.” - -“And upon our resolution,” she replied. - -They then parted to sleep for the night; and soon their love, their -weariness and their purpose were all forgotten, except in disturbed -dreams, in which he thought of wandering through unknown swamps with -Sosee, and she pictured the rescue of her sister by a heroic lover. - -In the silence and longing of that night, however, Koree audibly breathed -the following sentiment, which is the first poetry made by the human race: - - What is life - Without a wife? - - - - -CHAPTER X. - - -[Illustration] - -As rosy-colored Morn advanced to greet the opening eyes of monkeys and -men, and spread her beams over Cocoanut Hill, lifting at last the veil -of mists which hung over Alligator Swamp, a fat baboon was seen wending -his way with a child in his arms to the settlement of the Lali. All night -long he had traversed wood and swamp, picking his way through bush and -fen, eluding the serpent and fleeing from the cry of the catamount, his -only companion the moon, and his only hope the morning. - -“I have avenged the rape of Soolee,” he said, as he approached the -assembled Apes who were expecting the several warriors back which had -gone to the country of the Ammi to recover the child that had been -recently captured by them. - -Great chatterings and shouts of gratification went up from the Lali as -they saw one of their number thus return victorious. Only the mother of -Soolee appeared distressed. - -“Where is my child?” she asked. - -“I have brought one of the Ammi instead,” was the response of the warrior. - -“A man,” replied she, “is no compensation for a monkey; and the finding -of another is no comfort to a mother for the loss of her own.” - -[Illustration: I HAVE BROUGHT ONE OF THE AMMI INSTEAD.] - -“You can have her for a slave,” was the reply. “You lost one, and you get -one: it makes no difference whether you have the same or not.” - -The mother, however, was not satisfied, although the rest thought her -grievance a small matter. The honor of the Apes was asserted by the -reprisal; and when the public interest is conserved the multitude cares -little for the individual loss. - -Orlee was placed in charge of this woman, who, notwithstanding her -dissatisfaction, was delighted, not only at having a child, but at -the fact that it represented the vengeance of her people. This double -relation to the infant made her both love the child and mistreat it, the -first because it was a child, and the latter because it stood in place of -her own. - -It was customary for the Apes, and also for the Men, when they had taken -prisoners from each other, to reduce them to slavery, a custom which had -arisen, however, only since their separation; for prior to that, they had -neither property nor interest in each other’s work; and so neither man -nor ape was believed to be worth anything. But, in acquiring property -they put value on men as well as on cocoanuts, and kept each other as a -treasure where before they had killed each other as a nuisance. Some even -went to war for the prisoners, and the more valuable they found men to be -the more they fought them, until they soon came to want enemies more than -friends, and to like them better than allies. They fought for something -instead of against something, and numbered their prisoners rather than -their victories. Both sides became kidnappers, instead of warriors, and -the principle and practice of slavery was established, as a result of -learning the worth of men. - -The warrior Oboo, who had brought Orlee to the Lali, was seen all day to -hang around the woman in whose charge the child had been placed. Some -thought it was on account of his interest in the child; but shrewder -apes said it was on account of his interest in the woman. As the -newly-arrived child had obtained a mother he thought it ought also to -have a father. The female ape did not repel the advances of the warrior, -but said that if he would also restore her own child he might be father -to both. The mother was, however, much comforted for the loss of her -child by this gain of a father for it. The two wanted both to attend -to the new child, the result of which was that the child received no -attention, which proved serious, as we shall see. For they paid so much -attention to each other that they often wholly forgot the child. - -This warrior, Oboo, had not a good reputation among the Lali. Several -scandals had already disgraced him, and his attention to this new woman -was looked upon with suspicion. - -“No good will come of it,” said an observant ape, who remembered his -gallantries to others, and who was aware that he seized every pretext to -ingratiate himself with a susceptible female ape. His bravery, however, -had made him a favorite among the women, although his gallantry had much -to do with it. He was a Simian “Masher,” and twice got his head pounded -by male apes who did not like his attentions to their female friends. - -This ape was charged with starting out for the child, not because he -wanted it, but because he wanted the mother, and because he hoped that -his bravery would be rewarded with her love. Thus are the motives of -apes, like those of men, impugned from jealousy, and our greatest -warriors are traduced by their rivals. No pains were spared to suggest -these suspicions to the woman herself, especially by another ape who -had loved her, and had likewise started for her child and come back -unsuccessful. These two male apes finally came together, and when -one charged the other with cowardice, and was charged in turn with -“spooniness,” they came to blows, or rather scratches, and would have -killed each other had not the woman interposed. - -“There is not much difference between you in virtue,” she said, “and -whoever brings back my child shall be thought the braver.” - -“Will you give up that ape if I bring back your child?” asked the -new-comer. - -“Yes, but I will stay with him till then for having brought this one,” -was her reply. - -The ape departed at this rebuff, divided in his thoughts between the -purpose of recovering the child and that of punishing his rival for his -insolence and his success. - - - - -CHAPTER XI. - - -[Illustration] - -The morning after the quarrel and make-up between Koree and Sosee, these -two lovers started out to rescue Orlee from the captivity just mentioned. -They tried in vain to induce the Ammi to go out as a body to recapture -her, but nearly all except these two had exhausted their strength and -their interest the day before. An excitement did not last as long with -the Ammi as with their present descendants, and when they were not all -interested they were quickly reconciled to an outrage. Koree and Sosee, -however, in their first ardor of love, knew no rest, and had not yet -learned to despair. - -Arming themselves, therefore, with clubs and sharp stones, they started -around the Swamp, intending to travel by day and at night to steal upon -the camp of the Lali and take the child by some artifice. They kept -along the border of the Swamp, and where it was not too deep to wade, -cut across its waters. The danger of neither wild beasts nor serpents -terrified them. They were together, and were fixed on one purpose. Koree -was willing to die with his Sosee, and Sosee believed she was in no -danger with her Koree. So with resignation or confidence they marched on, -heedless of a plunging alligator or swinging python which occasionally -disturbed the stillness of the Swamp. Occasionally they stopped to gather -mussels or climb after nuts; for they did not think it necessary to take -provisions with them. The supplies of scouts and armies in those days -were light—they foraged on the country. They marched without chart or -compass, and yet rarely missed their way; for they had learned to guide -themselves by the sun and the lay of the land. If occasionally, in the -thick of the forest, they could not get their bearings, they emerged from -the swamp to look at the mountains with whose ranges they were familiar. - -It was not easy for primitive man to get lost, and it did not much matter -if he was lost. Wherever he placed his foot he was at home, carrying -his citizenship with him. Everywhere around were his possessions—the -ungathered fruits and fish and game. Everywhere were his friends—the -chance baboon or man that he might meet. Only recently, with the -association which we mentioned, had there sprung up attachments for -individuals. Before that their love was for the race, and anyone -represented that race about equally well, as in the case of dogs. Even -since they had come to associate, their attachments were not permanent; -and they relied much on chance-comers for their society. Should they, -therefore, be lost, they would not feel that they were among strangers, -any more than that they were away from home. - -“If we do not find Orlee will we go back?” asked Koree. - -“We will not go back till we find her,” replied Sosee. - -“We could live nicely in this forest,” said he; “there is plenty of food, -and we need no company.” - -“When we find Orlee,” she replied, “we will have company.” - -“Two is company,” said he, “and when we find her and take her to her -mother, shall we not come here to live?” - -“Let us first find her,” she persisted; “we can then decide what to do -next.” - -“There is nothing that we can lack here,” mused Koree; “a forest and a -swamp include all human desires;” and then, after a pause, he added, “and -Sosee.” - -“And Orlee,” interposed Sosee. - -“Love in a cottage” was long antedated by “love in a forest.” A sycamore -tree was cottage enough for our first parents. - -“O! O! O! O!” ejaculated Sosee, too frightened to say more, as she -suddenly ran up a tree. - -“Oo! Oo! Oo! Oo!” shrieked Koree, as he ran up another tree. - -The cause of this sudden fright was a huge mammoth which slowly lifted -itself from a clump of bushes and walked toward the lovers. A great hairy -elephant, twice as large as those now existing, with long front legs, -carrying his bushy body high up in the air, and a back gradually sloping -to the ground, like a giraffe—such was the monster that confronted them. - -[Illustration: KOREE AND SOSEE ENCOUNTER A MONSTER.] - -Sosee had run up a slim sapling which this beast could easily have torn -up with his trunk, or from which he could have shaken her down like a -cocoanut; while Koree had run up a tree stout enough, indeed, to resist -uprooting or shaking, but so low that the monster could easily have -reached him with his long trunk. Their safety lay, therefore, in their -silence, and they were accordingly quiet,—quiet even for lovers. - -The mammoth was in no hurry to leave the place. He browsed about slowly, -picking up bunches of grass, or reaching after leaves. Once he picked a -trunk full of leaves from the tree in which Koree was sitting; but he -took no notice of Koree, whether because he did not see him, or because -he did not care for him. Koree and Sosee alone were concerned,—not the -pachyderm. They remained simply quiet, and left the great beast in -undisputed possession of the field. Never were two lovers more cruelly -interrupted, and never did an unwelcome intruder stay so long. - -“Two is company,” said Koree to himself, “and three is a great big crowd.” - -The lovers could neither touch nor speak. - -“Would that our trees were nearer,” whispered Koree. - -“Or stouter,” replied Sosee. - -“Or taller,” returned Koree. - -“Never did I think,” muttered Sosee, “that anything so great could come -between our love.” - -“Ugh!” shuddered they both. - -The huge beast kept on eating, unconscious that he was a bore. - -“I wonder when that brute will get enough,” muttered Sosee in impatience. - -“If he is going to fill all that big carcass,” replied Koree, “we are up -here for all day.” - -“Our only hope is that the leaves of these trees will give out,” replied -she, “so that he must go elsewhere to finish his dinner.” - -“Or that he will want to take something to drink with his meal,” replied -Koree, “and so go to the Swamp to wet his snout.” - -These breathings of the lovers were unnoticed by the monster, who took -them for whisperings of the wind, and went on leisurely eating. - -“Never did I see such an appetite,” said Sosee. - -“Or one so contented with its dinner,” added Koree. - -“I don’t like this seat,” grumbled Sosee, “I wish we were on the same -tree.” - -“I neither want to sit up here,” returned Koree, “nor get down.” - -“I’m hungry,” said Sosee, after a long pause. “Never did I sit so long at -a meal, and not eat anything.” - -“If this meal of the brute goes on much longer,” said Koree, “we will -both starve, or else be eaten.” - -Just then, to the inexpressible relief of the tired, hungry and bored -lovers, the animal showed signs of satiety. He quit eating, looked around -with an air of satisfaction, stretched himself, and made a start, as if -about to leave the place. Their gratification, however, was short. He -walked around a few steps, and then, to their dismay, lay down under the -tree on which Koree was perched, and disposed himself for an afternoon -nap. - -Koree looked at Sosee, and was silent. - -Sosee returned the look, but was too disgusted and empty for utterance. - -“If that beast sleeps as long as he eats,” she said, “we will get neither -supper nor slumber to night.” - -“We will, however,” returned Koree, “be safe; for neither ape nor snake -will attack us with such a watch at our door. So one danger wards off -another.” - -They were now reconciling themselves to spend the balance of the day, and -perhaps the night, in this situation, and also to add to their weariness, -hunger and disgust, the additional discomforts of sleeplessness and -danger. For as Sosee had never slept on a tree (the Ammi having come to -the ground before her birth), it was feared that, although her feet were -still prehensile, and served her well in climbing, they might fail her -from lack of practice when it came to holding to a limb when asleep. -Koree determined not to sleep under these circumstances, both because he -could not trust himself on a tree when asleep, and because he wanted to -watch Sosee in order to rescue her from the mammoth in case she should -fall. Love up a tree was thus faithful to the last. - -While they were making their preparations for a continued disappointment, -however, an accident, which at first seemed disastrous, came happily to -their relief. Koree, in restlessly changing his position, fell off the -tree, and came down with a thump on the back of the mammoth. - -Whether Koree or the monster was more frightened we know not. Koree, -however, was uninjured, the great beast breaking his fall, for the huge -back of the animal reached, when lying down, well up toward the branches -on which Koree was sitting. Sosee was, perhaps, the most frightened of -all, as one is often most scared at the danger of another; and she gave a -scream which the animal hearing, believed, in connection with the thump -on his back, to be caused by some other animal that was attacking him. - -He started from his sleep and his position at once, and, without looking -for the cause of danger, rushed through the forest, while Koree ran up -another tree and waited till the brute was at a safe distance. Then both -he and Sosee came down, and returned thanks to the great Shoozoo for -their deliverance. - - - - -CHAPTER XII. - - -[Illustration] - -The two lovers had no other adventure until they came the next afternoon -to the farther side of the swamp, where the Lali were settled. There they -were astonished at the multitude of the Lali, who greatly outnumbered the -Ammi, fairly swarming in the trees and in the open country beyond. - -It was not deemed safe to venture out of the Swamp in the presence of so -many apes, some of whom would doubtless recognize them as belonging to -the Ammi; so they determined to hide in the bushes till night, and then -reconnoitre. - -In the meantime they had abundant opportunity to watch the movements -of the Apes, who kept in groups, as if fearing an attack, although an -occasional one was seen alone, and some few came even into the Swamp. The -two lovers did not fear the approach of single apes, or even of a small -group; for, as there were many varieties among the Lali, and not a single -kind only, as among the Ammi, the appearance of a new kind raised no -suspicion. The Ammi, or Men, moreover, were hardly distinguishable from -certain of the Lali, at least by the Apes. - -“The chance of finding Orlee among so many,” said Sosee, “is not good; -and if we find her we cannot take her from them.” - -“Wait till it is dark,” replied Koree, “and the groups will disperse, -when we can both approach them without suspicion, and carry her off -without resistance. Trust your lover.” - -“I trust you, or I should have not come with you, or have asked you to -come,” she answered; “but I see no way to accomplish our object.” - -“Do you see that big baboon beyond the crowd walking alone with an ape?” -he next asked. “He looks like the fellow that struck me when Orlee was -carried off.” - -“It must be the same,” replied Sosee; “for there is a child near him -which looks like Orlee.” - -“I think that is only a young monkey,” replied Koree, “which has been -taken out by its parents.” - -“The three pay no attention to the other Apes,” replied Sosee, “and -are wandering still farther from them. Let us approach them; in their -absorption it will cause no alarm.” - -“If it is the baboon which I think it is, he will know me,” replied -Koree. “At least I cannot mistake him.” - -“If we could get a little nearer,” said she, “I could tell whether it is -Orlee or not.” - -“But we cannot get near the child without getting near the parents,” -replied Koree. - -“She has wandered off from her keepers,” retorted Sosee. “Let us approach -slowly.” - -“Wait till it is darker,” said he. “We can then get near enough to -recognize her without being recognized by them.” - -“They pay no attention to the child,” continued she, “which is moving -away from them; and if she goes much farther we can get near enough to -see her distinctly without their noticing us.” - -“They seem, however,” said he, “to be much interested in something. Such -earnestness among monkeys has a meaning.” - -“It cannot concern the child,” replied she, “and between their absorption -and her distance, we can get her away while they are thinking about -themselves.” - -“I hate the looks of that baboon,” mused Koree. - -“I like the looks of that child,” replied Sosee. - -“I will get her if it is Orlee,” he said, “but I want to avoid a blow -from that brute. We had better be sure it is Orlee before we take the -risk of a broken head in finding out.” - -“The child keeps upright far more than the others, which makes me think -it is not theirs,” said Sosee. - -“I should like to have the child just to avenge the blow I received,” -said Koree; “but I don’t want to have a second blow to avenge.” - -“I will take the blow if you will get the child,” replied Sosee. - -“As long as the two old apes are so near it, we could not carry it off -if we got it,” he said. “They would pursue us and overtake us with our -load.” - -“Two ought to be able to resist two; and Orlee would help us,” replied -she. - -“Before our fight could end the other apes would come to their succor,” -said he. - -“Perhaps,” suggested Sosee, “they would give up Orlee if I would stay -with them instead.” - -“I do not like that suggestion,” replied Koree, “I will get Orlee and -keep you. Would you rather have Orlee than me?” - -“I was not thinking of that, but only of Orlee.” - -They had now approached near enough to see the girl distinctly, whom they -recognized to be Orlee. She had wandered so far from her keepers that -they did not observe the approaching lovers. Koree and Sosee concluded to -steal up to Orlee, and, without raising any suspicion, lead her in the -direction of the Swamp and then hurry with her into the bushes where they -could not be followed. As it was getting dark the time seemed propitious -for their scheme. - -The couple in charge of Orlee, were, as will be surmised, Oboo, the ape -who had carried her off, and the woman Oola, in whose charge she had -been placed. This ape continued his attendance on this woman without -interruption, having, while the other Lali were amusing themselves in -groups, wandered off with her and the child to be alone. This accounts -for their distance from the rest of the Apes. They were so much absorbed, -moreover, with each other, that they did not notice that the child, -Orlee, had wandered away from them, and was now almost out of their -sight, and entirely out of their thoughts. Oboo and the woman simply -kept up their love-making, while Koree and Sosee were approaching their -prize. What made one pair of lovers forgetful made the other pair alert. -Love shuts and opens the eyes of mortals in turn, and lays off the -harness from one which it puts on another. - -As soon as Orlee recognized her sister she gave a scream of joy which -disconcerted the plans of Sosee and Koree. It also startled Oboo and -the woman out of their bliss, who now experienced all the horrors of -interruption which the other two lovers had suffered the day before on -the appearance of the mammoth. Oboo felt most disappointed, and the woman -most frightened. They sprang up, and, for a minute, were bewildered, -thinking that some curious apes, perhaps rivals, had come suddenly upon -them, through jealousy or stupidity, to interrupt their _tète-a-tète_. -The woman instinctively sprang in the direction of the child, while Oboo -looked around to see who was the cause of the interruption. Soon they -both took in the situation and started in pursuit of the child. - -Koree, perceiving that no time was to be lost, had picked up the child -and started for the Swamp, Sosee following at full speed. The child, -frightened by the bustle, set up a combined screaming and chattering, -which attracted the attention of the other Apes and called a large number -of them into the pursuit. The scene for a few minutes was like that of a -couple of foxes pursued by a pack of hounds, in which the foxes were fast -making for the woods. - - - - -CHAPTER XIII. - - -[Illustration] - -All now depended on whether Koree and Sosee with the child could reach -the Swamp in time to conceal themselves before the Lali should arrive. -For so dense was the under-growth in the Swamp that it was next to -impossible to discover man or beast that should attempt to hide there. - -Sosee could easily have gained the Swamp in time for safety, but Koree, -who was encumbered with the child, and so could not run as fast as she, -was in danger of capture by Oboo, who was fast gaining upon him. Sosee, -indeed, had already reached the Swamp, and was about to plunge into its -thickets and out of danger, when she turned to see if Koree and the child -were making their escape. - -She was horrified to perceive that the pursuers were close upon them; and -so, instead of saving herself, she turned on them, and made a desperate -effort to rescue her companions. Before she could reach them, however, -Koree was overtaken by Oboo, when, releasing the child, he dealt Oboo a -powerful blow, which stunned him, and, at the same time, avenged the blow -received by Koree from the same ape some days before. Sosee now came up, -and, flying at the ape with screams and scratches, dealt him another blow -scarcely less severe than that administered by Koree. These two blows -compelled the ape to loose his hold for the moment. - -[Illustration: THE RESCUE OF ORLEE.] - -Released in this way from his pursuers, Koree picked up the child and -again started for the woods, while the ape, recovering from his blows, -again started in pursuit. He was gaining on Koree a second time, and -would have overtaken him again, had not the course of Koree and Sosee -now begun to diverge; for in their anxiety to escape neither had noticed -the direction taken by the other in their new start, and so they became -separated. - -Oboo, observing the beauty and agility of Sosee, felt a desire to possess -her which outweighed his anxiety for the child. “She is prettier than the -old woman,” he said to himself, “and I will go for her.” Oboo always had -time, even in a fight or a race, to observe an attractive female, and -his head was invariably turned by the sight, no matter at what business -he was engaged. He accordingly turned from the pursuit of Koree and -Orlee, and started after the girl. The scratches and pounding which he -had received from her were no warning to him, but rather increased his -infatuation by testifying to her spirit. Love at first sight is greater -among Apes than among Men, and overcomes more obstacles. Accustomed to -fight for their females, and often to take them by overcoming them in -fight, the love of our primitive ancestors was often “love at first -fight.” Oboo, therefore, forgot his heroism in his passion, and, -abandoning all that he had set out to accomplish, started in pursuit of -his pleasure before he was yet out of his pain, and thought of enjoying -the caresses of a lover, while still smarting under her blows. The battle -of Mars thus turned into the battle of Cupid, and the warrior, turned -lover, continued the pursuit without much changing his method. - -While Oboo was thus pursuing Sosee, Koree with the child in his arms had -reached the thicket, and was safe. Other apes came up, indeed, to the -edge of the swamp, and penetrated its depths; but, as it was getting -dark, they soon turned back, discontinuing the pursuit. While there were -many things to be found in the Swamp, their experience had taught them -that nothing was ever found there which was sought for. They might get -other apes or other game, but any particular thing that had escaped in -that tangled waste was deemed irretrievably lost. - -In the mean time the pursuit of Sosee continued. Love added its -inspiration to that of prowess in the breast of her pursuer. Oboo ran for -both pleasure and glory. He must have the girl both because he wanted -her, and because he dared not return without her. Hence he ran as one -who had everything at stake; and so did she. Like Camilla, scouring the -plain, she put the Ape-land far behind her, while the distant forest -seemed, like Birnam Wood, to be fast approaching her. - -Like the timid hare pursued by the hunter, which darts straight for the -shelter of the thick brush or dense cedars, her ears laid back upon her -shoulders, and her feet in the air, gliding with a billowy motion to a -place of safety, so the swift Sosee ran, measuring off the rapid miles -under her feet, while her panting warrior-lover, hotly pursuing, sought -to take her ere she should find a refuge in the dense groves beyond. - -Sosee at last gained the swamp, and was secure from the determined Oboo, -who saw her disappear at once out of his sight and out of his hope. The -other apes, moreover, which had pursued from a distance, abandoned the -chase when they saw her enter the jungle, as a dog ceases to pursue a -bird which has flown into the air. - -But while she thus escaped her pursuers, she did not so easily escape -those who awaited her. Scarcely had she entered the forest when she was -met by several apes who were returning from the pursuit of Koree. These, -seeing Sosee approach the forest, ran along its border (still keeping -behind the foliage), with a view of heading her off. These now sprang -suddenly upon her, and, after a short struggle, made her a prisoner. - - - - -CHAPTER XIV. - - -[Illustration] - -Sosee was led back to the settlement of the Lali, where she was the -admiration of all the Apes. Her bright face, her beautiful form, and her -shapely limbs fixed the attention of old and young. Her captors were -particularly proud and received the congratulations of all the rest, who -had now returned from the pursuit of the fugitives. - -Oboo alone was unhappy. He was disappointed, both because he did not -capture the girl, and because another did. One’s loss is greatest when it -is another’s gain. He had visions of love which he must now exchange for -those of jealousy. Quick to conceive a fancy he was slow to give it up. -Started on a pursuit of love, he was never satisfied till he had achieved -a success. And, to make his condition worse, the woman Oola, in whose -charge Orlee had been given, and to whom Oboo had been making love, flew -into a rage because he had allowed Orlee to escape. - -“I am now wholly without a child,” she said; “you are no ape, to fail -to overtake a boy encumbered with a girl. You sought my love only to -betray me, and now I am without either lover or child; for with you I -will have nothing more to do. You care less for me than for the girl whom -you followed, instead of my child. If you ever make a soft face at me -again, I will scratch out your eyes. I have lost everything through your -unmonkey-like conduct.” - -Oboo had not much to say, for he could not talk anything well except -love, and that he could not talk in company. So he took her reproaches, -but felt humiliated; and his embarrassment was increased by the raillery -of the others, who said he could love but could not run, and that in -the tussle with the girl, he had been beaten. They were so merry at his -expense, all the company joining in, that he got his “monkey up,” and, -becoming enraged, vented his ill humor on Ilo, the successful ape, who -had brought back Sosee. - -“You could not have caught her,” he said, “if I had not driven her into -your arms.” - -“You would never drive a girl into another’s arms, if you could avoid -it,” replied Ilo; at which the company chattered merrily their assent. - -“I should have caught her,” he said “had you not interfered. She was -already mine, and you only took after her after she was captured.” - -“I suppose,” replied the other, “you would like to have her, now that you -have lost the old woman.” - -“I am entitled to her,” he said, “and I shall take her from you.” - -“You could not keep her when you had her,” replied Ilo; “and do you -expect to both take her from me and keep her yourself?” - -“You got her by chance, and could not help taking her when she ran into -your arms.” - -“I notice, however, that you did not take her when she ran into your -arms,” was the reply. - -“I will show you,” said Oboo, “that I can take her from both herself and -her captor;” at which he seized the girl, and was about to lead her away, -when the other dealt him a severe blow. - -This was the signal for a great fight. Oboo sprang at the assailant, -striking him with hand and foot. The latter then flew at Oboo with both -hands, seizing him by the neck. There was now a hand to hand struggle, -in which Oboo tried to punch the stomach of his rival, while the latter -tried to throw Oboo to the ground. Oboo with his great jaws seized the -shoulder of Ilo, who, in turn, dealt Oboo a blow with the other hand, -and then bit off his ear. They now fought with both hands and feet and -jaws, and the region round about echoed with their growls. Oboo was -finally thrown to the ground, when the other jumped upon him, and nearly -beat out his breath. As often as he tried to rise the other knocked him -down, and sat upon him. The victory was evidently with Ilo, and Oboo -would have fared worse had not the woman, who really started the quarrel, -now interfered to end it. She took the part of her _quondam_ lover, for -whom she discovered a lingering affection, as soon as she saw that he -was likely to be slain. She growled and seized the victorious ape, and, -after a little struggle between the three, Oboo was allowed to get up and -walk away. Too weak to fight and too cross not to, he gave some savage -growls as he retreated, and threatened to whip his contestant and take -away the girl at another time. - -Oboo felt that this was an inglorious day for him—to lose two lovers and -get one thrashing. He had, however, only himself to blame. He persisted -in making love when he should have been watching a captive. He failed -to catch either a young man or a young girl, and when the latter ran -into his arms, he failed to retain her, but got worsted in the struggle -which ensued; and when he finally would avenge his failures on a more -successful ape, he was ingloriously beaten. He therefore lost prestige, -military and social, for which he said all the Apes would have to suffer. -He was more angry after his fights than in them, so that his rage came -at a time when it could not serve him. Monkeys, like men, are more angry -at others for their own failures than for anything else, and so Oboo -determined to avenge his own blunders on others. - -The only one who showed him any sympathy was the woman Oola, who got him -into all his trouble. She indicated a willingness to take him back into -favor. But Oboo was too cross to entertain proposals even of love, and he -went grumbling away, like Achilles, to meditate mischief and make himself -more miserable. - - - - -CHAPTER XV. - - -[Illustration] - -Such was the wrath of Oboo, great monkey from beyond the Swamp, which, -kindled by defeated love, against all mortals, sent many souls of -heroes to the Shades, and gave their bodies a prey to beasts and birds. -Unappeased it flamed in wars unquenchable, and almost sent the human -race out of history, and gave back the earth to monkeys, snakes and -wide-spreading marshes. - -Instigated by the woman who had lost her child, and who was for a second -time bereaved by the loss of its substitute, Oboo proposed the next day -that Sosee be given back to the Ammi, in exchange for the child first -captured. This was suggested, not because he cared for the child, but -because he desired to punish the ape who had got possession of Sosee. If -he could not himself have the girl, he did not want another to have her. -Such jealousy was in the minds of sub-mortals. - -This the swift-footed Ilo, captor of Sosee, stoutly resisted. “If you -touch a hair of that maiden,” he said, “I will jump with both feet -against your belly and scratch out all monkeydom. To your licking of last -night I will add your death to-day. Hear me, O Shoozoo, if ever monkey -was so wronged as I, and help me to avenge myself upon this insolent -gusher, who has already made love to all the apes, and now wants my -little and dear prize, which alone is to comfort my home, and gather my -plantains in the far off forests of the uplands.” - -And he walked along the shore of the loud-roaring frog pond. - -In the meantime Koree, who had eluded his pursuers, was picking his way -through the Swamp, carrying Orlee in his arms and Sosee in his heart, -hoping that his beloved was likewise threading her way by another route -to the Ammi, where they would soon meet to enjoy perpetually their love. -This consummation, however, was not to be reached so soon; but many -adventures must first be encountered by both. - -As he journeyed on he saw a great cloud spreading over the Swamp, -darkening the skies, so that he supposed that Night had suddenly settled -down upon Day. Great swarms of bats came out and filled the air with -their dull beatings, which added terror to the mystery. - -Then followed a great rain, or flood from the skies, which, though -lasting but a few minutes, came in such torrents that trees were broken -in two and all the land submerged. Koree believed that the Sea had -suddenly come upon the Land with the Night, and that Death had come with -both to claim him and all things else. - -The sun, however, soon came out, reviving his hope; but it came so hot, -that though it scarcely penetrated the thick foliage, which was matted -with tangled vines, it generated stifling gases, which, rising from the -damp shades, nearly strangled him; so that, having escaped death from the -water, he now expected it from the air. - -Next came a great terror, and he expected to die from fright. There was a -desperate battle between a hippopotamus and an alligator which reddened -the yellow flood, and stirred it into a wilder foam than the great rain -had done. The alligator he believed to be the great Dragon of Shoozoo, or -Devil of the Watery World. - -Soon the whole swamp was filled with animals. Called out by the -rain, some had come to feed, knowing that the waters, stirred by the -shower, would be alive with fish and reptiles, while others—great -land animals—had been disturbed in their lairs by the washout. Among -these last was a great three-toed tapir, which seemed to be lost; and, -following near it, came a more graceful animal, having a long tail and -two-toed feet, forming a kind of intermediate type between a hog and -a deer. These two animals were closely watched by a cave lion, which, -washed out of his cave by the flood, was approaching them stealthily in -hope of a meal. The sight was one of mingled fear and relief to Koree; -for if the lion had not his eye on some desirable game, he would have -attacked him. He awaited, therefore, with anxiety the next movements of -the beasts, expecting another fight like that between the hippopotamus -and the alligator, when a more dreadful sight alarmed both him and the -lion, as well as the game which the lion was pursuing, and started them -all in different directions. - -[Illustration: THE BATTLE IN THE SWAMP.] - -This was the appearance of a Dinotherium running at full speed, with -another animal on its back, both engaged in a fatal conflict. This -Dinotherium looked to Koree like a moving hill, so huge were his -dimensions. He was a combination of elephant, camel and kangaroo, having -a huge hunch on his back, powerful tusks issuing from his jaws, and a -pouch underneath, like our Marsupials. The beast on his back was what is -known to scientists as a Machairodus, a terrible, carnivorous, cat-like -creature, with long saber-shaped canines in its upper jaw, fitting it -to pull down and destroy the huge pachyderms (which could easily shake -off a lion or tiger.) This monster and this terror of the forest, which -together seemed like all the great animals rolled into one, were now -united in a death deal. While the cat-like beast was fastening its fangs -in the flesh of the other, the latter tried alternately to shake him off -and to roll over him. But the savage beast, with great skill, defeated -these attempts. The huge monster next tried to run under the horizontal -limb of a tree, which, though high, was yet too low to permit him to -pass under with his load. Koree thought that the beast on top would now -be scraped off; but not so. On approaching the limb he jumped over it, -like a circus-rider, and alighted on the running beast on the other side. -The two now darted on through the Swamp, and at last plunged into a deep -lake. The rider was thrown from his place, and, as he could not swim, -was drowned. The other, however, which was accustomed to navigate the -lakes of this region, and often entered even the open sea, swam across -the lake (a deep pool in the slough,) and there, after floating awhile, -like a ship unable to find a harbor, moored himself to the bank with his -tusks; and in this position Koree left him. - -“Where can Sosee be during this flood?” soliloquized Koree, as he started -again on his way; “and will she escape the rage of all these beasts?” -He remembered, however, her agility in climbing trees, and her repeated -escapes from greater dangers; so that his fears were soon calmed in his -confidence, and the thought of meeting her again made him quickly forget -the great forces of nature and animals which he had just seen in their -struggles. - - - - -CHAPTER XVI. - - -[Illustration] - -When Koree returned with his charge to the Ammi, these were engaged in -one of their sports, which consisted in throwing cocoanuts, and the rush -of all to get them, much as their descendants now play football. Some -of the younger ones amused themselves by racing up and down the trees -trying to catch one another, and occasionally shaking each other from -the branches. One little girl had caught a skunk which she was trying to -feed with figs, to the great disgust of the skunk. All had apparently -forgotten the absent ones; for the memory of our first ancestors was -short, not having yet been exercised on history. - -“I told you to drop that skunk,” said an old woman, “and had you minded -me you would not now be sneezing and spitting so violently. Go down to -the spring and wash yourself.” - -Just then a cocoanut flying through the air, struck the woman in the -eye, and for a moment she did not know whether it was the odor from the -skunk, or a ball from the players that knocked her down. - -“I told you to be careful with your cocoanuts,” she said, “and had you -minded me you would not get this shaking;” at which she seized the -nearest player by the hair and administered several pulls and scratches. - -Finally Koree made his appearance, leading Orlee by the hand. His first -anxiety was to know whether Sosee had returned, whom he was alarmed not -to see among the players. The mother of Orlee ran franticly to receive -her child, which she fondled with an incoherent chattering. - -“Where is Sosee?” asked Koree. - -“Where is Sosee?” asked the mother at the same time. - -Both looked at each other in amazement, and no words were needed to -express their mutual disappointment. - -“Have you restored to me one child only to lose another?” asked the -mother reproachfully. - -“Have I lost a lover,” replied Koree, “only to rescue a baby?” - -Both, forgetful of what they had, were about to quarrel over what they -had not. Koree, however, was the more inconsolable, because he had lost -all that he went for, which he had, indeed, before starting, and went -to retain rather than to acquire. For he went for Sosee rather than for -Orlee, seeking the latter only that he might not lose the former. - -“Wait,” said Gimbo, the grandfather of Sosee, “and she may yet return. -She is doubtless in the swamp detained by some attraction or difficulty.” - -“Sosee, unincumbered and swift of foot,” replied Koree, “would not -be longer in returning than I with the child. She has either been -re-captured by the Lali, or else met with a disaster in the swamp. -Perhaps the lion I saw chasing the tapirs devoured her;” and he grieved -like Pyramus mourning for Thisbe. - -Little did he think that at that moment she was the cause of a quarrel -between Oboo and Ilo in the far off land of the Lali. The mother was less -concerned, both because she was in the first joys of receiving a restored -child, and because, in addition to the uncertainty as to whether Sosee -would not return, it was not customary for our ancestors of that day -to concern themselves about their grown children. When their offspring -had passed the disabilities of infancy, they were allowed to shift for -themselves. Orlee, being still a child, was, therefore, dearer to the -mother than Sosee; and so, measurably content with the former, she was -willing to trust the other to her lover or herself. - -When Koree, however, became satisfied that Sosee was lost, he resolved -to find her; and, as his fears early persuaded him that she was lost -(since fear acts faster in the absence and confidence in the presence of -lovers,) he resolved at once to get up an expedition for her recapture. - -To set all doubt at rest about her whereabouts, some neutral monkeys, who -had recently visited the Lali in a migration southward, now came to the -Ammi. They informed the latter that the chief talk among the Lali was -about the capture of a beautiful girl, and the quarrel of two apes over -her possession. They said also that they heard it intimated among the -Lali, that as the girls of the Ammi were more beautiful than those of the -Lali, they had a project to capture more of them. - -Armed with this information and these threats, Koree now went about to -rouse the infant race of men to arms. Rumor went before him, and that -which had been a hint soon became an assertion. Horrid tales of captured -maidens filled the imaginations of Cocoanut Hill. The young women were -especially interested, some hoping they would escape capture, and others -that they would not. The old men and women were indifferent, especially -as babies were not to be captured. But the young men were easily aroused, -especially those who had lovers, and they determined to defend their own. - -A league was, therefore, entered into by the young men of the Ammi, which -the older men soon after joined, to proceed, like the united princes of -Greece, to recapture the stolen maiden and restore her to this earlier -Menelaus. Another and older siege of Troy was thus planned, which, like -many battles greater than Homer’s, was lost to history, and can now be -restored only by meager relics saved from the past. - -Let us then proceed, Homer-like, to build up the history of this war, -as the mammoth has been rebuilt by putting together here and there a -bone, and as Roman history has been constructed by inspecting coins and -broken statues. Greater battles are lost than any that are retained in -history. The greatest throes of earth and of its inhabitants have escaped -even tradition, and are now to be exhumed only from the forgotten. -We dig up history as we do potatoes, and wonder that so much activity -has been buried. History is now built from this end, and long periods -of forgetfulness are being reclaimed. Like the bridges which span the -Mississippi, we throw up great highways across prehistoric periods, and -prospect in times and lands beyond the known. - - - - -CHAPTER XVII. - - -[Illustration] - -Busy now were the preparations for dire war. Not that troops were to be -armed, or supplies collected for a long campaign. No vessels were to be -fitted out to cross the Swamp, or ambulances prepared for the wounded. -No loans were to be negotiated or preliminaries of diplomacy settled. -The early men were always ready for war, in fact were always at war. One -of the first advances of mankind was made when wars were separated from -peace, and men observed the difference. As yet war was the natural state, -and never had to be declared. Whenever a man met an ape, or even a wild -beast, the signal was given for a fight. The race had not yet learned -peace, which had to be learned before war, the arts of peace being all of -later development. Men had fists before they had plows, and took their -food before they produced it. - -But the Ammi were, nevertheless, busy with preparations for war. Those -are often busiest who have least to do. The excitement made them active, -and they rushed about impatient to begin the fray. They had not yet -learned to wait, or to take time for things. To resolve was, as yet, to -commence. Unaccustomed to those great achievements which require time for -preparation, they would enter into a long war as quickly as into a single -battle. Had they found their enemy they would have fought that day. The -battle generally comes too late for savages, the impulse for war being -expended before the fight begins. - -Still a few things had to be prepared. While they expected to get their -rations from the Swamp, and to rely on some stone heap for weapons, they -remembered that in the few years of their separate life as Men they had -accumulated some wealth. This it was thought best to protect. They had -large quantities of cocoanuts and other fruits in their dens; they had -made some valuable instruments of stones and shells; their dug-outs -themselves were worth much to them, and would likely be destroyed in -their absence; for all which reasons some of the older men opposed the -project of war; for wealth is always a promoter of peace. - -“It is better to keep our caves and cocoanuts,” said Oko, a stingy -fellow, “then to get back a girl.” - -Their very position in the Cocoanut Hill region was deemed valuable on -account of its abundant fruits and its nearness to the Swamp with its -game. They found it advisable, therefore, to protect their homes and -country, and for that purpose determined to leave some at home. They -learned also that some of their implements might be used in war, or -rather recalled the fact, since they were first invented for purposes -of war; and it took some time to select what they wanted and to provide -for its transportation. Some, not accustomed to hunt, or not liking the -products of the Swamp, concluded to take with them the sweetest nuts -and juiciest fruits of the Cocoanut Hill region, while others were busy -determining the best route to the other side of the Swamp. - -These things required activity, and men and women were accordingly busy -preparing for war. For the warriors were not confined to men. There were -amazons before there were belles. Woman’s equality in public affairs -was recognized before her inferiority, and equal rights were as yet the -law of the race. Instead of leaving the women behind to protect their -homes, they concluded to leave the old and the children behind, while -the able-bodied of both sexes were all to go to the field. Oko, the -stingy fellow just mentioned, proposed to kill off the non-combatants, as -they would eat all the cocoanuts before the warriors should return, and -perhaps not let the latter again have possession of their homes. - -“You greedy ape,” replied one to this suggestion, “you have not yourself -gathered all the fruit you now have; you took some from others’ dens. -I saw in your hole a wedge which I made for myself, and a marrow bone -sharpened by a woman. You would now like to kill them lest they get back -what you stole from them.” - -At this the avaricious ape, Oko, threw a cocoanut shell at the speaker, -but took care that it was an empty one, for he was so economical, since -he had begun the collection of nuts, that he never wasted anything. - -The other threw back a filled cocoanut at him, and knocked him down. His -generosity in using a whole nut served him a good turn, for liberality -is necessary in war, where one may be too stingy even to fight, and lose -a battle because he begrudges the price of the weapon. Oko picked up the -cocoanut, and—kept it. The Ammi now expected a desperate struggle between -the two men; but, one being satisfied with his victory and the other with -his gain, they parted, one going off with an air of triumph, and the -other with a cocoanut. - -Other disputes arose over various details in the conduct of the war, but -none broke out into violence. - -“Whose girl will Sosee be if we get her back?” asked one. - -“Mine!” replied Koree, defiantly. - -“Are we all to fight, and only one to get the advantage of it?” asked -another. - -“You must fight,” retorted Koree, “or you will lose all you have. The -restoration of my girl means the protection of yours.” - -“If I capture her,” replied a third, “neither Koree nor any one else will -get her. A girl, like a cocoanut, belongs to whomsoever gets her.” - -“Whoever gets her,” replied Koree, “will get a broken head if he does not -restore her to me.” - -It was now feared that this altercation would lead to a civil war before -the foreign war should commence; when the thoughts of the company were -turned by the suggestion of Oko, the stingy fellow mentioned, that the -Lali had doubtless acquired some possessions, so that they would all -return laden with the spoils of war. - -“If it were not so,” he added, “I would not fight at all.” - -“Perhaps,” suggested one of the young men, “there are also some -pretty apes among them, so that instead of one girl we may bring back -many—enough for all.” - -“Sosee must be recovered first,” said Koree, “when I will help you to -catch all the rest.” - -Some, however, could not be made to understand what the war was for. - -“I can see no cocoanuts in it,” said one. - -“I don’t want my eyes scratched out,” added another, who had lately -become interested in a girl who was sitting beside him; “nor do I want -her injured.” - -“Who knows,” asked a third, “if we shall ever meet again? I fear we shall -lose this place and lose one another.” - -“Why did Koree lose his girl?” asked another. “He should not have taken -her into danger.” - -“Men and warriors!” interposed Koree at this point, fearing an -insubordination that might be disastrous, “is this your resolution? A -little while ago you were impatient for battle. Now you are seeking -excuses for peace. None of you are worthy of such honor as awaits us. -The defeat of the Lali will give glory to the Ammi, and many women and -stores. We will divide their country among us, or, at least, have no more -trouble from them. You fight not for me only but for yourselves, and -fight that you may have to fight no more. For, this war will destroy -all our enemies. Now swear to me not only that you will go to the war -(for that you have already done), but that you will never abandon it till -Sosee is restored.” - -This they all swore by scratching their ribs, and again there was harmony -in the counsels of war. - - - - -CHAPTER XVIII. - - -[Illustration] - -The war being resolved upon, preparations now went on, and consumed so -much time that many again lost interest. They grew impatient, first at -the preparations, and then at the expected war itself, and so had to be -repeatedly stirred up by new infusions of resolution. Koree superintended -the preparations, whose chief work was to keep the minds of the people -prepared; for our early ancestors could not hold a resolution as long as -we. Their anger was soon cool, like their love, and their attention went -rapidly from one subject to another. - -“Hollow out some water-melons,” said Koree, “in which to carry our -weapons.” - -The Ammi had used melon rinds for vessels, when they wanted something -larger than a cocoanut shell. These lasted, indeed, but a short time, but -they were easily replaced. - -“Water-melons are too heavy,” said one, “and will spoil before we reach -the enemy. Let us use bark which can be tied at the ends and hung over -our shoulders.” - -Some, accordingly, took bark, but many preferred melons or gourds, -which, however, they exchanged for bark before proceeding far. It takes -experience to learn what is best for war or peace. - -“Sharpen your clubs,” said Koree, “but only at one end. Let the other end -be blunt, so as to serve for a staff in marching and a weapon in battle.” - -They accordingly sharpened their clubs, which served as spears, and also -aided them in digging for roots, clams and other provisions. - -They also provided split bones and broken cocoanut shells, which were -sharp, and so served both as weapons to cut and implements to dig. - -Some thought of still other things which might be useful in war, and -filled their bark knapsacks with so much that, when they were ready to -start they were so hopelessly overloaded that they could scarcely move. -But they gained experience on the way, and soon learned what to leave -as well as what to take, thus acquiring early the soldier’s virtue of -learning to throw away. - -The greedy fellow Oko, already mentioned, wanted them to carry all their -stores with them, and he tried to get others to help carry his. - -“We helped you gather those stores,” said one, “and will not serve you -again by carrying them after you have taken them from us.” - -“I did not take them by force,” he answered. - -“No,” replied the first, “because you would not fight; but you stole -them, or persuaded us to give them to you.” - -“I always gave you something in exchange.” - -“True, but it was in each case something worth less.” - -Oko was the first man that had learned to cheat, his avariciousness being -distorted into dishonesty which easily deceived them, since men, though -they early learned to resist force, were slow to withstand guile. - -Being unable to get help in carrying his stores he concluded to stay at -home to watch them, when the thought of getting greater stores from the -Lali again changed his mind; and his voice was now for war. - -The preparations thus went on, and all seemed propitious for a successful -campaign, when suddenly a tremendous shock was felt. A mountain range in -the distance rose to the sky, forming a ridge of the Alps. A roar such -as has not since visited the earth reverberated through the country, -shaking the air as violently as the first shock shook the earth. The -world rocked to and fro like a vessel at sea, tumbling every man to the -earth, and rolling him over the ground. It was impossible to stand, or -even to lie still. The whole human race became sea sick, and all were, in -addition, more frightened than sick. Down came the dug-outs with their -contents over the heads of the Ammi, and men and provisions were rolled -promiscuously over the ground. Fruits and nuts fell from the trees, and -many trees fell with them. There seemed to be no safety for anything on -the earth, or even for the earth itself. The land appeared to be going, -and all looked for a general collapse. - -[Illustration: THE CATASTROPHE.] - -To add to the disaster the Swamp overflowed, and its waters rushed over -the settlement of the Ammi, overwhelming everything except the huts that -stood on high ground. Several of the men, and many of the women and -children, who had escaped being scared to death, were finally drowned; -while reptiles and wild beasts again overran the region of the Ammi. All -Alligator Swamp seemed emptied upon Cocoanut Hill, and the infant race -looked to see their country, like Holland, sink out of sight. - -The return of the waves was scarcely less disastrous than their advance. -As the earth settled again, and the flood came down from the hills, it -swept away much that the advance had left. The earth for a long time -swayed back and forth, the waters rushing alternately in each direction. -Many of the Ammi escaped only by running into the trees, some of whom -even then were shaken down into the water. To add to the terror the sky -became dark, the sun being entirely hid by the thick clouds of dust and -smoke which issued from the crevices of the earth. Noises were repeatedly -heard as of great explosions, and, following every rest from the rocking -of the earth, was a shaking up by intermittent convulsions. The birds -did not find even the air still enough for flight, but many fell to the -ground (or water) killed by the concussion. None knew when the next burst -would occur, but all looked for their death, uncertain only whether it -would come by fire, water, or engulfment. Thunder seemed to come from -both the earth and sky, and lightnings flashed out from the rents of the -earth as well as of the clouds. The world at times appeared to be on -fire, and it looked as if it would be burned up in case it should escape -all the other means of destruction. The sun, the moon, and the stars -seemed all to be destroyed, and no human being looked again for light -except from the fire of the destruction of all things. Death was expected -to follow this disaster, in which men and animals alike were to take part. - -In the midst of this despair, however, hope arose with the stillness that -came as sudden as had the commotion. The earth seemed again to stand. The -thunderings became quiet; the waters rushed back to their places; light -began to appear through the smoke, and in time the sun was seen to be in -his place. The distant mountain ranges again appeared in sight, but much -changed. Some peaks were gone, or lay in heaps about the ranges, while -new ridges arose where the plain had before stretched. A new earth seemed -to greet the sky; the old horizon was gone, and a new sky-line along the -mountains added grandeur as well as novelty to the changed scene. - -For a moment the impression prevailed that the earth was not permanent, -but changeable like the sea, the forest, and the men. The globe was at -this time passing through a crisis as decisive as that of the human race, -preparing for our present physical geography as well as our present -society; and we may be excused for turning aside, for a moment, from -the convulsions of the human mind in its preparations for war, to the -physical convulsions of Nature in preparing the earth itself for its -future uses. - - - - -CHAPTER XIX. - - -[Illustration] - -The smoke, the noise, the fire and the water having cleared away, the -Ammi were now discussing the earthquake. They had forgot their war -preparations in the presence of a greater enemy than the Lali. They had -to make peace with the World. What had happened? Will it occur again? -These were among the questions they asked. - -“I do not see that we made much by coming down from the trees,” said one. -“The earth is just as unstable as the trees, and shakes as much as they. -I should have been thrown off many times had there been any place to fall -to.” - -“Had we kept to the trees,” observed another, “we should have had more -experience in holding on. I got thrown down and rolled about, because I -had nothing to hold to. When the ground rocks it is more violent than a -palm or a pine.” - -“It all comes,” said Gimbo, the grandfather of Sosee, “from walking -upright. If the Apes had kept on all fours, they would not have been -thrown to the ground. Nobody can stand on his hind legs alone, in such a -shaking. While the rest of you tumbled I remained on my four feet. Men -need to walk solidly, and nothing gives a firmer foundation than four -feet. No elephant is fool enough to walk on two; and men, by keeping two -of their feet in the air, are always falling. It was a great mistake to -get up from the ground. Other animals have not done it. Men were made to -go on all fours. Everything they want is on the ground, and they can see -it better when looking down than when looking up. Their eyes are thus -nearer what they are hunting, and they are not in danger of stumbling -when they are looking at their feet.” - -Another thought that the horror occurred because they were too -irreligious. They had been neglecting their ceremonies, and there -was general doubt about the traditions of Shoozoo. “It is a divine -visitation,” he said, and he was in favor of sacrificing something. - -Another said: “It was the voice of the great winged Alligator, with which -Shoozoo fought. Chained under the Swamp this beast shook himself, which -caused the waters to flow over these regions. The fire and smoke which he -blew from his mouth, caused all the damage. He swallowed up the sun and -stars for awhile, and the mountains which he carried off he has not yet -returned. I think we should propitiate him, or he will come again.” - -[Illustration: THE FIGHT WITH THE FIRE MONSTER.] - -The fire, which some had never before seen, or only vaguely observed in -the lightning or a distant volcano, proved the greatest terror of all, -as it was the greatest mystery. They saw it creeping through the grass, -destroying scattered pieces of wood, as well as flaming in various -parts of the forest. They thought it was a great serpent, and tried to -kill it by throwing clubs at it, which it in turn devoured; when they -declared that it was a monster that fed on wood, and ate whole forests. -Some thought that it was the sun that had broken loose from the sky, and -fallen in pieces to the earth; because, in addition to its light, they -felt its heat. All were inclined to worship it as a divinity, some saying -that it was Shoozoo himself. - -“It is some kind of snake,” said one, “and I never yet saw a snake that I -could not strangle;” whereat he seized a burning brand, which he took to -be the body of the serpent, and tried to squeeze it to death. He dropped -it quickly, however, with a loud scream, saying that it had bit him. He -then jumped on the fire, thinking to crush the monster, when the sparks -flew up in great numbers, frightening all who were present, and igniting -the hair of the assailant, who was soon rushing about in flames. - -“There is a fight between him and the monster,” said one; “let us see -which will whip.” - -The man was soon burned to death and his body nearly consumed, at which -great terror seized the rest. - -They called the monster the Sun-serpent, and for a long time, whenever -fire appeared, they avoided it, or prayed to it, to avert its wrath. When -it lightened they were afraid, and prayed that it would remain in the -sky, and not come to the earth. They regarded the thunder as its voice; -and when it struck a tree or destroyed a forest, they said it had come -down to take a meal. In time, as they got more familiar with it, they -took to feeding it with wood, to appease its hunger, and prevent it from -devouring them or their possessions. When it went out, they thought it -had crawled into the earth, like any other snake, and rarely was anybody -bold enough to try to dig it out, or even to approach its hole. When -they saw it flying through the air, as in lightning or a falling star, -they predicted some great calamity, and were exceptionally religious. -They pointed to the many thunder storms and to the damage done by the -lightning and rain as evidence of all this; for these disturbances were -all more frequent and violent in the Tertiary Age than at any subsequent -time, the air being never for a long time either clear or silent. - -There was, in short, so much that the early race did not understand, that -they were perpetually in awe. Every convulsion of nature was a subject of -worship to them. They thought it was alive, or produced by some living -monster, and they feared its wrath and tried to appease it. Earth-quakes -soon got a name, and were placed among the divinities. Thunder, -Lightning, Rain, Hail, and subsequently Snow were canonized as heavenly -spirits. The wind was the breath of Shoozoo, or of his great Alligator. -Sunshine came to be the smile of the Great Serpent, when he was in good -humor. The air came soon to be as full of monsters as the earth, and -men’s imagination saw more than their eyes. A spirit world had dawned -upon them, and the supernatural began to rule the race. All the unknown -was fashioned into gods, and the realm of ignorance became one of terror -and devotion. - -“It all comes,” persisted Gimbo, “from looking up. If people only walked -on their four feet they would not see the sky and its fires. I never see -anything that is high, and so am not made afraid. The cure for all these -evils is to return to all fours, when you won’t see anything that is so -far off that it does not concern you.” - -“But you see more snakes, and are more frightened by them than we,” -retorted one. - -“Snakes must be seen before you have to do with them,” replied Gimbo; “if -they see you first you don’t come off so well. By keeping my eyes on the -ground, I see them before they harm me, and soon they are out of the way, -or I am. When your first acquaintance with a snake is made by tramping -on him, there is a disagreeable surprise and a dangerous controversy. -But it is not so with the Sun-serpent or the Alligator of Shoozoo, which -you are always seeing and which never comes near; so that you are always -frightened when there is no danger.” - -A long religious controversy then ensued, which turned mainly on whether -men should keep to the ways and traditions of their fathers, and walk, -like them, on all fours, or whether they should stand up and look ahead. -The latter course was thought to unsettle their faith and make them -introduce new gods, if not to abandon entirely their religion. Gimbo -thought there were swamp snakes enough to engage men’s attention, -without troubling themselves about snakes in the air. “Shoozoo’s -Alligator,” he said, “is a literal swamp reptile, and that is enough to -worship. By introducing new snakes into our theology, you will confuse -all our religion.” - -Others, however, were not as conservative as Gimbo, but believed in -acknowledging snakes wherever they found them. Religion is naturally -progressive, they thought, and advancement in religion at this time was -believed to consist in adding more snakes to theology. - -While, therefore, Gimbo represented the Unitarians, or Mono-snakists, -who claimed that there was only one great snake god—the Alligator of -Shoozoo—there was a polytheistic, or poly-snake, party, which insisted on -a many-snaked Pantheon, and particularly on a belief in the sun-snake and -the wood-eating snake, which were thought by many to be one and the same; -while still others thought that these, with the Alligator of Shoozoo, -formed together a trinity of snakes which were in substance all one, but -manifested themselves under the three forms of Sun-light, Wood-fire and -Alligator. - - - - -CHAPTER XX. - - -[Illustration] - -There had up to this time been many sects in the religion of the Ammi. -They all agreed simply in recognizing Shoozoo as its founder, and his -fight with the Alligator as the great transaction on which it rested. -There was early, however, a schism in the main body. One class had -drifted away from the worship of Shoozoo to the worship of his Alligator, -and in time they claimed that the Alligator was the god, instead of -Shoozoo. This came from their habit of using the alligator, or figures -representing it, as symbols of the Shoozoo religion, whereby the symbol -became in time more important than the thing symbolized. There were, -accordingly, in the Shoozoo religion, the pure Shoozoo party and the -Alligator party, and for nearly a generation a fierce controversy raged -between the two, resulting often in bloodshed. - -The Alligator party, however, triumphed in the end, and many of the pure -Shoozooists were exiled, and have since lived among the Lali and other -apes, where they have continued to worship Shoozoo without any mixture -of the Alligator, and have converted back some of the Apes to their faith. - -In time, however, the Alligator party came to be divided among -themselves, as the outgrowth of the same spirit. They accustomed -themselves to use, as the symbol of the Alligator, a dragon-fly (for the -alligator vanquished by Shoozoo was admitted to be a flying alligator -which somewhat resembled a dragon-fly), and by many the dragon-fly came -at length to be taken for the Alligator and to be worshipped as such. -A fight accordingly arose between the pure Alligator party and the -dragon-fly party that waxed more bitter than the original fight between -the Alligator party and the Shoozoo party. The dragon-fly party were in -the end victorious, and the Alligator party were slain or banished as -heretics, just as the pure Shoozoo party had been. - -There was soon after this a like division among the successful Dragon-fly -party, and from a like cause. The people, finding it difficult to draw a -dragon-fly, represented it by a cross, or two lines drawn transversely, -the longer one representing the body of the fly, and the shorter one -its wings. This symbol, which was soon seen on all the utensils of the -Ammi, and frequently carved on trees and rocks, especially during the -controversy with the Alligator party, came at length to be taken for -the dragon-fly, and worshipped in its stead. This abuse was deplored -by some of the Ammi, who tried to recall the people to the worship of -the dragon-fly itself, and not its symbol. Others, however, had become -attached to the cross, and soon there was a violent controversy between -the dragon-fly party and the cross party, and the dragon-fly party fought -the cross party more than they had both together fought the Alligator -party. The cross party were successful, however, and the dragon-fly party -were compelled to keep quiet; for by this time they had learned the first -rudiments of religious tolerance, and stopped killing and banishing the -dissenters, provided only that they would not preach their doctrines in -public, or attempt to disturb the established faith. - -Soon, however, the cross party was rent with dissensions, one class -insisting on worshiping the long beam of the cross, and the other -the short beam; and there was soon the long-beam cross party and the -short-beam cross party in the church, and the long-beam party fought -the short-beam party more than the whole cross party had before fought -the dragon-fly party. The short-beam party insisted at last on making -the short beam as long as the long beam, forming something like a Greek -Cross, which finally came to be their symbol, while the long-beam party -came in time to omit the short beam altogether and use only a one-beam -cross; and they took as their symbol a straight line. - -The short-beam cross party, however, were successful, and they greatly -persecuted the long-beam party, though with less severity than their -predecessors had done, because the spirit of religious liberty was always -in the ascendant. - -The short-beam cross party, however, soon broke up into other sects owing -to disputes about the nature and form of the short-beam cross, which -gave the long-beam cross party (which had at length become the one-beam -cross party) an opportunity to urge its claims, and there was a reaction -among the short-beam cross party in favor of the long-beam cross party, -which gained many converts, and at one time threatened the disruption of -the short-beam cross party; and it would doubtless have accomplished this -but for a great reformation which now swept over the religious world of -the Ammi. - -This was a movement in favor of restoring the primitive religion of -Shoozoo, or the worship of the Alligator. It was led by one Lookoo, -who was afterwards known as the Great Reformer. With a fiery zeal and -vigorous eloquence he called the attention of the Ammi to the fact -they had got away entirely from their original faith, which was in the -Alligator, and, instead, were worshipping short crosses and long crosses. - -“Neither short crosses nor long crosses,” said he, “are anything, but -only alligators. Not even a dragon-fly will avail you, but only the -original Alligator of Shoozoo, who occupies the Swamp and flies through -the air. He gives us warmth in the sun, and comes to the earth in -lightning to punish his enemies. He is the Lord of the Ammi, and will put -to flight the Lali and all monkeys beyond the Swamp. He led our fathers -out from the Apes, gave us Cocoanut Hill, taught us to make darts and -wedges, and led us to build houses. Our gathered fruits are due to his -guidance, and by his jaws the reptiles of the great forest are kept -in fear. Return, then, to your allegiance to the great Alligator, the -companion of Shoozoo and equal deity with him.” - -Lookoo gained many adherents, not only because it was evident to all the -Ammi that they had departed from their god for his successive symbols, -but because the priests of the short-beam cross religion had established -the custom of drinking all the milk in the Cocoanut, which they had -taught the rest of the Ammi that it was sacrilege for anybody to drink -but the priests. The reformation, accordingly, gained headway out of a -desire on the part of the common people to get some of this milk, as well -as out of a change in theological convictions. There was a general demand -for reform, and some of the worst, as well as some of the best men, were -active in the movement. The priests made the principal opposition to it, -although a few of them, in the hope of preferment, or because they had a -grievance against the other priests, joined the new movement and became -its leaders. - -The reformation was generally successful. Some, however, refused to be -led away by it, but became more devoted than ever to the short-beam cross -worship, and cultivated such a devotion for the short-beam cross as had -never been known. They were commonly known as the clerical or priestly -party, and constituted the conservatives until the time of the great -earthquake just mentioned. They insisted on retaining all that their -ancestors had handed down to them, the very fact that it had come from -antiquity being evidence of its truth; while the Reformers claimed the -right of going back to original sources and re-establishing themselves on -the truth of the great Alligator. - -The tendency to skepticism and the introduction of new gods, deplored by -Lookoo, as well as the explanation of the Alligator and other theological -truths as phenomena of nature—fire, earthquake, wind, etc.—has generally -been found among the Reformers, who early tried to explain all religion -away, or else resolve it into natural causes and effects. - - - - -CHAPTER XXI. - - -[Illustration] - -Among the Lali the religion of Shoozoo was preserved in greater purity. -There had not been such a great departure from Shoozoo himself, as among -the Ammi, where he was entirely lost in his symbols. Neither had there -been so many splits and reformations. The Apes preserved the unity of the -church better than the Men. - -Instead, however, of losing Shoozoo in the Alligator, like the Ammi, and -then losing the Alligator in the dragon-fly, and the dragon-fly in the -cross, and the cross in the short beam of the cross, the Lali went to -the opposite extreme of deifying and worshiping not only Shoozoo, but -everything connected with him. Before one generation had passed Shoozoo’s -wife, Simlee, was admitted to equal divinity with him, and it was known -as the Shoozoo-Simlee religion. There was thus a male and female deity, -or king and queen of heaven. Soon after this Shoozoo’s parents and -children were likewise added to the divine family, and worshiped by the -Apes. Next came the dart with which Shoozoo struck the moon, and finally -the moon itself. - -Everything was deemed sacred with which Shoozoo had to do, except the -Alligator, which the Apes persistently refused to worship, because the -Ammi had taken it up. They claimed, instead, that Shoozoo had killed -the alligator in order to take the swallowed moon out of it. Many -relics of the dead alligator, indeed, were furnished, and kept as a -perpetual testimony to the achievements of Shoozoo, and as a rebuke to -the unbelieving Ammi, who dared to worship it. These relics were worn as -charms, and many cures were alleged to have been effected by them. Among -others the gallant Oboo had been cured of a violent disease. The Swamp in -which the Alligator was killed was deemed sacred, and in their devotions -the Lali turned their faces to it. Water from this Swamp was likewise -deemed sacred, and was always kept on the altars of the Apes, and great -devotion was paid to it when exposed to the sight of the worshippers. -Forty apes were once killed for sacrilege committed by spilling water, -most of them for being mere witnesses of the outrage. A drop of Swamp -water was put on every Ape’s head when he was born, and the ceremony was -often repeated through life. This water was used in the consecration of -their priests, and its application once turned the scales of war. Its -appearance was consulted for omens, and it was invoked by monkeys when -about to go after fruits. Bad luck was attributed to certain disturbances -of it. Water-songs were the first specimens of music known to the Apes, -and were always sung at exhibitions of water taken from the Swamp. The -finest gourds and cocoanut vessels were made to hold this water, and -the decoration of these was the first step taken in Sacred Art. Among -the first pictures sketched were crude representations of a stream. -They called their children after this water, such being the meaning of -the common names among them. “Ilo” signifies “touched with water,” and -“Oboo” means “Soaked.” Rainy days were deemed more sacred than clear -ones, on account of their water, whose descent from the skies was taken -as influences from Shoozoo. A flood was regarded as this god coming in -disguise; and to be drowned was to be lost in Shoozoo. The Lali washed -oftener than the Ammi, not for cleanliness, but on account of their -devotion to water; and they would not kill a snake that was still wet. -As long as anything, indeed, had upon it water from the great Swamp, it -was supposed to be under the protection of Shoozoo. The Apes drank water -before eating, and the last thing they did when dying was to drink. To be -deprived of water for certain rites was the most serious affliction that -could happen to an Ape, and a rebellion once broke out among the Lali -because, when on a long march, their leader would not go out of the way -to find a stream for ceremonial purposes. - -But the refinements of ritual among the Lali were not confined to water, -although at the time of which we speak the water rites had attained -their greatest ascendancy. The Apes were accustomed to make pilgrimages -to Cocoanut Hill where Shoozoo performed his great exploits, which was -regarded as Holy Ground, and there they often worshipped. It was the -interference of the Ammi with these privileges that led to the quarrels -between the Apes and the Men, of which we have spoken. The Ammi, however, -claimed that the Apes came not for religious purposes, but to steal -cocoanuts, and hence the reprisals already mentioned. - -One of the rules of the Lali religion was to kill screech owls when the -moon was quarter full, because it was at this period that Shoozoo had -killed the owls of Cocoanut Hill, and all owl hunts were in commemoration -of his great exploit. Another was to hide their darts for six days -after this festival, because during this time Shoozoo rested from his -hunt and needed no more owls. Another observance was to present snakes -to one another at a certain period in honor of the great serpent which -Shoozoo killed and presented to Simlee. For days before this festival -the young monkeys were kept busy hunting snakes in the great Swamp. -Another requirement was that on the day before Owl-hunt the Lali should -walk upright as a preparation for the great festival, since on this day -Shoozoo walked upright to aim at the moon. They were forbidden to take -fish from the great Swamp on Snake Day, though they might then take them -from other waters. No monkey must kill another during these festivals, -as this right was reserved to the priests alone, who must, however, use -their victims only in sacrifice. - -Departure from these rules was punished by being plunged in the Great -Swamp to wash away the guilt. The sinner was kept under as long as the -celebrant deemed fit; and if he survived he was said to be reconciled -to Shoozoo, and if not he was deemed incapable of purification and -deservedly dead. There were other penalties for small offenders. Most -of the offences among the Lali were religious violations, and the -punishment was in the hands of the priests, which had much to do with the -preservation of the unity of religion. Sin was recognized before wrong, -nonconformity before crime, and ecclesiastical penalties before civil. -Frequent attempts were made to throw off the tyranny of the priesthood, -but the leaders of the revolt were quickly apprehended, and usually put -to death with great tortures. Heresies were not infrequent among the -Apes, who soon learned, however, that it was not policy to make them -known. In general there was a remarkable unanimity among them—a greater -degree than has since been known in religious affairs. - -Among the maxims of the Lali, which were also current among the Ammi, -(for, notwithstanding their religious differences, their morality was -substantially the same), were the following: - -Keep your snout in your own cocoanut. - -Never bite off an ear in sport. - -Stick to the tree you are climbing. - -Don’t fight over what you don’t want. - -Save what you can’t eat, remembering that you must eat again. - -Don’t crack your cocoanuts on each other’s heads. - -Half the time spent in washing that you spend in scratching would keep -you more comfortable. - -Don’t man the Ammi, (which among the Ammi reads, “Don’t ape the Lali.”) - -Get up a tree rather than dispute the ground with a tiger. - -If you don’t pick your neighbor’s fleas you will be bit by your own fleas. - -After this digression on the religion and morality of the Lali, we will -return to the affairs of the Ammi. - - - - -CHAPTER XXII. - - -[Illustration] - -Having repaired the damage of the earthquake and flood, the Ammi set out -on their march to the country of the Lali, having, first, however, armed -themselves with the light weapons and provisions already mentioned. The -expedition was led by Koree, who labored hard to remove every obstacle, -and he set an example of endurance, as well as infused courage in the -irresolute. - -“We start out for Sosee and glory,” he said. “The time will come when we -will delight to recall the difficulties which now trouble us.” - -They marched more around the Swamp than through it, keeping, however, -near its borders. This was a longer route, but fraught with less danger -and difficulty. At night they retired to the Swamp, lest they should be -surprised by the Lali, and when they became hungry they scattered to -collect food, of which there was great abundance. The earthquake shock -and the floods had shaken the fruits and nuts from the trees, where they -could now readily be gathered. - -Oko, the greedy fellow mentioned, suggested that they collect stores for -the whole campaign, and take them along, since they might not find fruits -so abundant as they proceeded. “There is plenty in the Swamp,” replied -Koree, who had recently passed that way. “The whole region between the -Ammi and the Tali abounds with things to eat. Let us not, therefore, -burden ourselves with what we may gather as we need it.” - -[Illustration: THE GREEDY OKO.] - -Determined, therefore, to forage as they went, and so to live at the -expense of beasts and reptiles, they proceeded on their march for several -days almost uninterrupted. They moved slowly, planning the details of -their campaign as they went. - -Among those who took part in this expedition, and were prominent in the -counsels and events that followed, were these: - -First was Cocoanut Scooper, the great hunter of the hills, who, if not -fierce in battle with wild beasts, was no less esteemed because of his -services in procuring provisions. He had scoured all the country round -about, and knew every tree and the quality of its fruit. He could at a -distance distinguish a palm, a walnut, a fig and a cinnamon tree; from -the appearance of a region he knew its value as a source of supplies; he -was expert in finding thickets where rabbits and other game abounded, -and he learned all the shoals of the Swamp where crabs and clams could -be taken. This man had charge of the commissaries, and looked out for -provisions for the expedition. During all their march his eye was on the -foliage of the forest, rather than on the trail of the Apes, looking for -something to eat rather than to fight. - -Next was Fire-tamer, the bright-eyed hunter who took prisoner the -red-winged beast that feeds on wood, and, having caught him in his -lightning errand to earth, kept him a captive in the camp of the Ammi, -feeding him on brush and bark, and confining him within an earthen mound. -The all-devouring monster could not be satiated, but, after consuming all -the wood they could carry him, died when they stopped feeding him. - -Next in valor and wise in counsel was Spread-mouth, the first man that -was known to laugh. His associates observed the changing size of his -mouth, which took as many dimensions as the chameleon took colors, and -was seen to be biggest when he was with women. Others learned to imitate -him, which was at first thought to detract, and then to add, to their -beauty, until, at the time of which we speak, half of the Ammi had -learned to laugh, but many of them awkwardly. The first laughs of men -were hardly distinguishable from grins and growls, and many indulged in -them unwillingly because of the huge teeth they displayed, which called -forth shudders rather than responsive smiles. They who laughed, laughed -alone, and not for many generations did a whole company join in laughter -together. As there was little wit to encourage laughter, the habit was -of slow growth, and its indulgence promoted quarreling rather than good -humor, because of the defiant appearance of the laugher. Only when men -became acquainted with laughter did they learn to like it, and not to -resent it. This great Spread-mouth was, therefore, long the terror and -the puzzle of the Ammi. - -Next in honor and influence was the great jawed and big-fisted Pounder, -whose mouth and hands were a double terror to his enemies. He scorned to -fight with clubs or sharpened stones, but thought himself sufficiently -armed by nature to meet his enemy, whether man, or ape, or wild beast. -He had fought the woolly Rhinoceros and Cave Bear; he had climbed after -wild cats, and fought in the Swamp with alligators. Pounder had a long, -narrow head, with retreating forehead, and great jaws filled with oblique -teeth, which struck terror into an enemy. He was woolly-haired, being -covered with coarse, dark-brown bunches of hair over his whole body, and -a beard of lighter color. His arms were long, reaching almost to the -ground, so that he could walk as well as fight with them, using sometimes -one and sometimes both. They were powerful, whether to hold an object or -deal a blow. His legs were short and thin, with undeveloped calves, and -he walked half erect with in-bent knees, carrying a huge body that was -ever ready for assault. He was impatient to reach the enemy, and at times -quarreled with his friends that he might have somebody to fight. Pounder -was more useful in war than in peace; and had not this conflict broken -out to make him a hero, he would have been killed as a criminal. - -A very different man from this, one shrewd in counsel and valiant in war, -was Abroo, known also as Family-Man. He had kept to one woman for years, -and kept together the children born to them, so that they constituted a -family. The children of his children were also recognized, and they, with -his other relatives were bound together in a kind of clan. He favored -this group, and sought to gain every advantage for it from the other -men. They kept their fruits together, and lived in common. A few others -were, indeed, admitted to their number, and all together they formed a -“set,” and the social distinction thus made was the foundation of caste. -Abroo was the leader, or patriarch, of this group, and all its members -adhered together in time of dispute. He acted for them all, which was -the beginning of representative government. He considered more what was -to their advantage than what was to the advantage of the whole people; -and many issues turned on whether the Abrooides or the rest of the Ammi -should control. The adherents of Abroo formed a kind of aristocracy. They -were high-minded, and, by general consent, deemed better than the average -man. Abroo had a great contempt for Pounder, and in a recent quarrel -would have been killed by the latter, had not his clansmen interfered to -save him. Abroo proposed that they fight by clans, saying that he would -lead his own hosts; but the suggestion did not prevail, as most of the -Ammi were not grouped in families, and did not even know their relations. -Abroo, however, persisted in keeping his party together in war, as in -peace, and in directing their movements. - -There were many other valiant men who went up in this march, and some -women. Among the latter was Watch-the-girls, who protected females -from the embraces of the stronger sex. She beat Spread-Mouth almost to -death for trying one of his smiles on a young girl in the woods, and -pulled bunches of hair out of his back. She scratched an eye out of -Goat-strut for his persistent attentions to unwilling females, and even -Pounder was afraid of her, not that she could vanquish him in fight, but -because other men generally assisted her in a fight against a lascivious -lover. She went fearlessly to war, and led many women and young girls -to battle. For, as yet, both sexes fought, and not the male only; and -Watch-the-girls had more followers than Abroo. - -Such were the hosts that went up against the Lali. They numbered two -thousand, although subsequent accounts placed them at many times this -number. They were less numerous, however, than the Lali; but owing to -their greater skill and to their arms, they hoped to overcome larger -numbers. - - - - -CHAPTER XXIII. - - -[Illustration] - -On the fourth day of their march the Ammi came to a body of water, which -threatened to turn them back and defeat their expedition. The great -earthquake, in tilting the country, had caused the Swamp to overflow, -and cover a great part of the dry land. There was a large lake formed in -this way, which was connected with the Swamp by a strait, or narrow neck -of water. It was necessary for the Ammi to cross this strait, or else go -round the new lake. - -“This lake was not here when I passed this way before,” said Koree, “so -that it cannot be deep. Let us, therefore, go through it, for we can -easily wade.” - -He thereupon marched in, leading the way for the hosts of mankind to -follow. He was soon, however, beyond his depth, and ordered a retreat. - -“We have not struck the right path,” he said; “let us cross farther away -from the Swamp.” - -He accordingly made a second attempt, but with no better result. The -water was everywhere too deep to ford. - -“I think,” said another, “that we had better go round. If the lake is a -new one it cannot be large.” - -“If the water is so deep,” replied a third, “it must extend far into the -country. I think we had better go through the Swamp.” - -“There appears,” said still another, “to be more water in the Swamp than -anywhere else. I wonder where all this water comes from.” - -“To settle the matter,” said Cocoanut-scooper, “I will climb this palm -tree. From its top I can see the end of the lake if it is small.” - -Suiting his action to his words he bounded up the tree, which was an easy -matter for one who had climbed so many in prospecting for fruit. - -“There is no end of the water,” he said, on returning. “The Swamp is -flooded and the new lake extends far out of sight.” - -“There is then nothing to do,” said Koree, “but to cross it. So let us -spread out, and each hunt for a shallow place.” - -“We might,” observed another, “wait till the water subsides.” - -“Or,” said Oko, “we could go back and give up the war. If the country -is flooded everything beyond is destroyed, and we will make nothing by -conquering the Lali, who have no doubt been washed out with all their -provisions.” - -“There is plenty of fruit beyond,” said Cocoanut-Scooper, “I observed -that before coming down from the palm. We shall have a prosperous march -if we only get over this water.” - -The great flood, however, rolled, like Jordan, between them and the -promised land; and no power, human or apian, had yet crossed such a -stream. - -A few limbs and trunks of trees were floating in the water, which -suggested an idea to Koree. - -“If we could each get on one of these pieces of floating wood,” he said, -“we might get over the water; for the wind is driving them in that -direction.” - -“Good,” said Pounder, “and I will be the first to try it. I can handle a -wild beast or an alligator, and so need not fear a log.” - -So he rushed into the water and seized the trunk of a dead tree floating -near, and was soon astride it drifting toward the other shore. - -Others followed his example, and soon the river was full of warriors, -each trying to mount a log and sail across the lake. Some of the limbs, -however, were too small to bear their weight, and had to be abandoned. -Others were of awkward shape and would not remain long in the same -position, and so could not be controlled. Several, however, mounted -successfully, and expected soon to reach the opposite shore. Pounder was -in the lead, and beckoned the rest to follow him. - -But there were not logs enough to supply all, so that not many followed -him, and some began to disparage this means of crossing. - -“Come on,” cried Pounder. “If you are afraid of the water, how do you -expect to meet the enemy?” - -“Come back,” replied Koree, “till we can all provide ourselves with logs, -or else find other means of crossing.” - -[Illustration: POUNDER’S MISHAP.] - -“I will not come back,” he said; “you are cowards, and when I get on the -other side I will”— - -Just then his log turned, and the great Pounder was seen with his feet -in the air, kicking at the sun. Down he went head first into the water -and out of sight. Soon, however, he reappeared, and after spitting out a -mouthful of water, and shaking his locks, tried to regain his log. But -he could not raise himself for awhile, and when at last he succeeded in -remounting the log it turned again and buried him a second time out of -sight. - -“I would rather have hold of an alligator than of this thing,” he said, -as he came up spitting and shivering. - -Finding, however, that he could not mount the log securely, he abandoned -it, and swam back to the shore; and all the rest who had not been thrown -from their logs followed his example, lest they should meet a like -disaster. - -But the experiment was not lost, and the fruitless attempt to cross in -this way suggested several improvements in navigation. - -“Some logs float better than others,” observed Koree; and there was a -long discussion about how to trim and hew them so as to make them hold a -man. Many experiments were made. They used their stone wedges and bear’s -teeth to hollow them into shape. This work continued for days, and as a -result of their consultations and efforts, a crude canoe, or boat was -formed, but not till after many failures to make it hold its contents. -The first success was accomplished by Duco who managed, after many -dangers, to cross the lake in a vessel of his own construction. - -There was now an ambition in every one to construct a boat, and they -almost forgot the war in their enthusiasm for this new industry. The -art of ship-building was thus begun, and a navy put in process of -construction. - - - - -CHAPTER XXIV. - - -[Illustration] - -“We can never at this rate,” said Koree, “construct boats enough to cross -this water. We have already toiled many days and only one man has yet -crossed and returned.” - -“Even if we could get our boats ready,” replied Pounder, “we could not -rely on them to carry us safely across. Duco waited long for a good wind, -and when it came it blowed him in many directions before landing him on -the opposite shore. If we entered such vessels, we would be scattered and -lost.” - -“Let us go back,” said Oko, “or we will lose all.” - -Koree at this moment observed that several of the logs had floated -together, and were being driven about in a cluster. The boys were amusing -themselves by jumping from one to another, and all were being carried -along by the flood. - -“If we could fasten those logs together,” he said, “they would hold many -of us, and by making several such collections we could all get across.” - -This was a new idea which was immediately acted upon by the Ammi. It did -not take our early ancestors long to adopt a suggestion or introduce an -improvement. From the thought to the act was only a step, and, though -most steps were failures, they made so many that occasionally they -achieved a success. - -“Collect all the logs,” he said, “and get willows and bark to fasten them -together.” - -They were, therefore, soon busy collecting the logs that were in the -water, and rolling others from the land with their clubs, which they used -as levers, thus learning incidentally an important mechanical principle. -With their hatchets of flint they chopped off branches, shaped the timber -into the desired form, and even felled trees for their bark or trunks. It -was obvious that a raft would soon be constructed and set afloat. - -They had shortly before built in a similar manner a small bridge near -their dwellings to enable them to cross to a dry point in the Swamp; and, -seeing a flood carry it away, (when it floated on the water), they were -not wholly unprepared to see this new raft also float. - -“If one log floats why will not more?” asked Koree. - -“If our bridge floated away, this also will do so,” replied another; and -they thenceforth called it the “floating bridge.” - -The raft was soon finished, and a large number of men and women at once -rushed upon it, so many, indeed, that it began to sink. - -This was looked upon as a failure, and the disappointment of the whole -human race was no less than when Fulton’s first steamer failed to move. - -“The thing will not float,” observed Oko. - -“It floated,” replied Duco, “until we all got upon it. If some would get -off it would float again.” - -“But we must all cross over, or none,” replied Abroo, the Family-man. - -“Let us build more rafts,” interposed Koree, “and in several of them we -can all cross.” - -“Instead of this,” said Abroo, the Family-man, “let part of our hosts -cross at once, when this structure can be brought back for the others to -cross. I and my party will cross first.” - -This was agreed to, except that, instead of Abroo and his clan, Duco was -chosen to take charge of the first load. - -The next difficulty was in getting the raft started. It lay motionless -with its load. - -“Wait till the wind rises,” said Koree. - -Presently a gust struck them, but it had no effect in starting them. - -“Let us push the thing with our clubs,” said Duco, at which all applied -themselves vigorously. - -The raft was easily moved in this way, and continued to go as long as -they could reach bottom; but in deep water it stood still, or floated at -the mercy of the waves. Pounder tried to move it by sitting on one log -and pushing with his feet against another. Others beat the water, which -had a little effect. Duco then discovered that by pushing in the opposite -direction against the water they could make it move; and soon they were -paddling in the modern fashion. During much of the way the water was -shallow enough to permit them to use their clubs as poles, or, to get -out and push; so that they were soon far out from land and going in the -right direction. - -They would now have reached the opposite shore but for Pounder, who -kept pushing in the way just described thinking he was forcing along -the raft. By reason of his vigorous efforts he snapped the bands which -held the logs together. The raft broke in pieces and he was the first to -fall through into the water. He went down between the logs which he was -pushing apart. Others fell into the water with him, but most remained -on one part or other of the raft; for it broke into nearly equal parts. -Pounder floundered awhile in the water; but, being accustomed to that, -through his previous plunges from the log, he soon got hold of one of the -rafts and lifted himself out of the water. - -“These things can’t be depended on,” he said, as he regained his place on -board. - -They had now two rafts instead of one, and they pushed and paddled on -each. Pounder, instead of sitting on one log and pushing against another, -next took a seat on one log and pushed with his feet against a knot -on the same log, and believed he was rendering the principal aid in -propelling the raft. - -It was easier to proceed with two small rafts than one large one, and -accordingly both were soon landed on the opposite shore, but not till -several of the passengers had fallen overboard and the craft had been -badly damaged. - -This was the first water voyage made by the human race. After repairing -their vessels they returned and brought over the remaining hosts, but -not without similar mishaps. Gimbo, the grandfather of Sosee, fell, -with others, into the water, and was nearly drowned. Only by standing on -tiptoes could he keep his head above water until he was rescued, when he -made the following observation: - -“The water is the only place where it is better to walk on two feet than -on four.” - -Having now crossed the lake it was proposed by Oko that they keep the -rafts. “We spent too much work on them,” he said, “to throw them away.” - -“We cannot take them with us,” replied Koree. - -“We may want them when we return,” interposed Duco; “so let us fasten -them where we can find them.” - -“And let us leave somebody here to watch them,” said Oko, apprehensive -lest some of their property should be lost. - -Like the ships of the Greeks on the coast of Troy these rafts were, -accordingly, made fast, so that they should be ready for the return -voyage of the warriors at the close of the war. - - - - -CHAPTER XXV. - - -[Illustration] - -The Ammi now continued their forward march with but little interruption. - -“I fear this expedition will end in disaster,” said Gimbo; “our falling -into the water is a bad sign.” - -“I think so to,” added Pounder, recalling his duckings; “but before it -ends I shall have a fight with the Apes, and smash some of their jaws.” - -“What looks to me worst,” said another, “is, that when I was sharpening -my flint this morning, the Fire-monster suddenly appeared to me, starting -up out of the flint and immediately disappearing again.” - -“I saw the same thing,” added another, “when Pounder struck me in the -eye. Fire flew in all directions and then disappeared.” - -One of the scouts now returned breathless announcing that they could see -the Lali in the distance. - -“Let me reconnoiter,” said Koree, who advanced rapidly to the farther -edge of the swamp, from which, indeed, the Apes could be distinctly seen. - -These were running up and down the trees, apparently gathering fruit, and -chasing one another over the plains without any apparent purpose except -sport. But men never knew the deep designs of Monkeys. - -“Where is Sosee, I wonder?” asked Koree, who was too much interested -in the object of his love to attend closely to the requirements of -war. He did not observe that at that moment a great ape was stealthily -approaching him from one side. - -For the Apes had out their pickets as well as the men, owing to -apprehensions of an attack; while others were scattered through the Swamp -hunting food. - -After a little waiting and looking he thought he descried Sosee in the -distance walking with a handsome ape who was exceedingly attentive to her. - -Jealousy now succeeded to prudence, and his rage would have at once -carried him alone into the ranks of the enemy to capture her (and be -captured instead), but, another incident prevented him from accomplishing -this disaster. - -“I will have her at once,” he said, “and scatter the brains of that -monkey attendant over any one who opposes me.” - -At this instant the ape who was watching him ran up and dealt him a -powerful blow, knocking his resolution, his jealousy and his love out of -him for a while. - -Koree, recovering his senses, now transferred his rage to this new -quarter, and, following it up with blows, soon brought to the ground his -assailant. - -This was witnessed by other scouts of the Lali who ran to the rescue of -their companion, and also by some scouts of the Ammi who closed on the -combatants, so that an immediate fight was threatened between the pickets -of the two forces. - -[Illustration: THE BATTLE BEGINS.] - -This encounter, all unpremeditated, nearly defeated the schemes of both -parties. It destroyed the hope of secrecy on the part of the Ammi, who -thought to take the Lali by surprise; and destroyed the hope of ambush -on the part of the Lali who meant to entrap the approaching enemy in the -Swamp. Each party, moreover, being ignorant of the force by which it was -attacked, and fearing that it might be larger than its own, shrank from -fight. - -As soon, therefore, as they got released from each other, they flew -apart, as if they had been fighting to escape, and not to conquer. Both -being afraid, and not daring to seem so, they affected to despise each -other, and so, showing their teeth and grinning a defiance, they went in -opposite directions, each hoping the other would take the encounter for -a chance meeting of strange apes hunting for food, and not a skirmish -between the advance guards of mighty hosts prepared for battle. - -It was too late, however. Both powers were now apprised of each others’ -designs, and both immediately put themselves in readiness for action. - -Koree was much blamed by the Ammi for his rashness in precipitating this -encounter. - -“It was your love,” said Abroo, “which brought us here to fight, and it -is your love which will now defeat us. O that love would take sense along -with it when it goes either to woo a woman or fight a battle.” - -“But it generally turns to foolishness before it accomplishes anything,” -added Cocoanut-Scooper. - -“And were there not a fool also on the other side it would never succeed -at all,” said Oko. - -“Koree’s case,” added a fourth, “makes more trouble for others than -pleasure for himself.” - -“For his falling in love once,” said Pounder, “I fell in the water twice.” - -And so they went on reproaching poor Koree for having such a strong love -that it would not let them rest, and such a foolish one that it would not -let them fight. - -Koree had nothing to say, but being himself most convinced of his own -foolishness, was angry that others agreed with him, and so simply changed -the subject. - -“Be ready to fight at once,” he said, “as we may be attacked before we -have time to decide whether we will fight or not. Between the lake and -the Apes we have nothing left but to triumph.” - -“It is either to be killed by the Apes or drowned in the water,” said -Oko, “and I don’t like either.” - -“We’ll kill some apes before we are killed ourselves,” answered Pounder; -“at least, I will.” - -“Their forces are more numerous than ours,” insisted Oko. - -“That being so,” said Koree, who turned every objection into a new -device, “we will fight them by stealth, creeping upon them by night, or -enticing them into the woods.” - -“Let us rather,” said Duco, “attack them openly, and all at once; though -we are less numerous we are armed, and have more skill than they.” - -“I think,” said Gimbo, “that the Apes will triumph; they walk on all -fours, and people can fight better with four feet than with two; besides, -it is not right to—” - -“Be still,” said Koree, “or give us your help, instead of your fears.” - -It was resolved at last, as they could neither retreat nor stand still, -to go forward; and they determined to await an opportunity to make an -assault. - -And now dread Terror brooded over the hosts of men, causing hearts to -flutter and visions of death to rush on the soul. Night and Blood and -Pain visited many in dreams, while to some Glory appeared, walking over a -vanquished foe. As Koree slept he thought he saw Sosee coming to him in -beauty with a branch of evergreen oak, and promise that he should rule -over a new race, while she should sit by his side as queen to receive the -admiration of all men. - -The Apes also quaked, and the convulsions which had just thrown up the -Alps were trifling compared with the tremors that shook the breasts of -the embattled hosts that night. The morrow was to witness a conflict that -would decide whether the human race was to remain on earth or go out of -history in its infancy. - - - - -CHAPTER XXVI. - - -[Illustration] - -Aurora now appeared in the east starting the sleepers from their dreams, -and advanced so bright that the terrified Ammi thought the Fire-monster -had seized the sky, and was spreading his wings over the whole world, -portending death to mortals. First she tinted the new-born Alps with -gold, then chased the mists from the valleys, and at last spread the -whole earth with day. The courage of the hosts now returned, which had -left them during the reign of the night-monsters in their dreams. - -With the coming of the light the Ammi marched boldly up to the Lali, -while the latter, thrown first into confusion, ran about in a panic, and -then, gathering themselves into a body, offered defiance to the intruders. - -As when a storm, rushing from the north, suddenly strikes the sea, -rolling the waves in mountain ridges along the main, which again, -breaking, rush back and fall like cliffs into the deep, stirring the -great cauldron of waters to its bottom, and then spread out again into -a calm, so the Apes, mightily stirred at the approach of stern War, and -driven by their fears, rushed hither and thither over the plain, mounting -the trees and scattering to places of safety, and then, as the storm of -terror passed on its way regained composure and settled down on the field -of battle ready for action. - -First advanced from the ranks of the Ammi the mighty Pounder, impatient -for battle, and, surveying the plain which lay between the Men and the -Apes, he grinned a challenge to the whole Lali. - -Him seeing from afar the mighty Scratch-for-Fleas, starting up from the -hosts of the Lali and shaking himself, (at which the earth trembled as -when Jupiter shook Olympus with a nod), advanced to him, saying: - -“For what purpose come you to the shores of the Lali? Have the cocoanuts -failed beyond the Swamp, or do you come for our women? We will defend -our own, be they cocoanuts or girls. Go back, or taste the wrath of the -Monkeys.” - -Him answering with a grin, the fierce Pounder showed his teeth. His great -lips parted, like the swinging gates of Babylon, bringing to view huge -rows of marble-like columns that lined, like palisades, a deep, dark -gorge. - -A like mouth opened on the other side; and Scratch-for-Fleas, looking now -to the east and now to the west, advanced, first on four feet and then -on two. Next he moved sidewise, and, at last, for a moment, stood still, -moving however in contemplation his great features, which, following -his thoughts, changed fast in shape and color like clouds in a mountain -storm. - -“Do you come for the maiden of Ilo?” he said. “You will return without -her. Give back your stolen fruits and women, and we may make peace before -war begins.” - -Pounder thereupon, without answering, rushed for Scratch-for-Fleas, being -better fitted for war than for diplomacy. - -Scratch-for-Fleas, fearing the mighty assault, retreated to the hosts of -the Lali, unwilling to fight so great a champion; and thereupon a loud -shout went up from the Ammi at their bloodless victory. Pounder, however, -was disappointed, for he loved fighting better than conquering. - -Then the nimble-shanked Nut-picker, he who had been reared on the slopes -of Wildcat Mountain, went out from the hosts of the Lali bearing a -cocoanut in his hand. - -Him seeing, the avaricious Oko, not knowing whether it was a weapon or a -truce-signal, went forth to meet, saying, “Do you mean war or cocoanuts? -If you mean cocoanuts, produce enough and we may give up the fight.” - -Then the nimble-shanked Nut-picker, true-aiming, threw and struck him, -and the cocoanut rolled to the ground on one side, and Oko on the other. -Picking up himself and then the cocoanut, Oko thereupon retired to the -ranks of the Ammi bearing with him his defeat and his booty. - -War was now declared and begun, and the two parties, hitherto friends, or -indifferent to each other, became enemies. So great a difference does so -slight a change produce. - -Then, according to the legends of the Ammi, the great spirit of Shoozoo, -looking out from the heavens at the combatants, and fearing that his -worshippers might be destroyed, called a council of the gods. Simlee, -his wife, Queen of Heaven, appeared, leaving her mists, and the great -winged Alligator came up out of the Swamp, dripping with the flood, and -the Fire-god left his place in the sky, and the Rainbow folded up his -rays, and the Wind left the earth and sea, (so that there was a season of -calms), and they all met in the sky to take counsel on the events that -were about to transpire on earth. - -“Dire war,” said Shoozoo, “is hovering over the world, and, unless it is -averted, neither Men nor Apes nor earth will long survive. Only recently -I saw the world mount up toward the sky, and to-day it stands on tip-toe -trying to reach the heavens; for the Alps have not yet gone down. The -great Swamp left its bed to march over dry ground, and has not yet gone -back. The noise of the earthquake has hardly yet subsided, but still -reverberates in distant thunders; and, should war yet rage, things will -be so mixed up that nothing will remain for earth or sky that is certain -for either.” - -“I will arise as a mist,” said Simlee, “and, passing between the two -armies, prevent their collision by destroying their sight.” - -“The Fire-god will soon scatter the mists,” said Night, “so that they can -fight in clear day. Let me rather settle down upon them, through whom -none can see; and, though it be but noon, I will wipe out their day.” - -And wrapping herself in thick clouds she started for the earth to cover -the battle-field with impenetrable shadows. - -“Let me rather,” said the great Alligator, “empty the Swamp on them -again, and overwhelm them with a second flood.” - -“They have made boats,” said the Wind, “and now defy the waters. Let me -rather start the air against them. I will give it wings to beat their -faces and call in Thunder to frighten them and Rain to blind them, and -will so mix heaven and earth and sea together against them that they -cannot proceed.” - -“There is nothing,” said Shoozoo, “that will avail, but to assuage -their wrath, which crosses streams and night and outlasts weather. An -interruption to-day prolongs the war, but does not end it. Let us not, -by impeding them, add to their rage against each other and their anger -against us. For I fear that men will one day mount to heaven and destroy -the Gods.” - -This advice they consented to follow, not, however, because any of them -wanted to, but because they could not agree among themselves what to do. - -It was accordingly decided that the deities, operating all together, -should descend to the combatants to work on their minds; and so, wrapping -themselves in clouds, and mists, and rain, and shadow, and light, which -were all mistaken by Mortals for forms of the weather, they entered the -battle with both Men and Apes, and worked for peace and a mitigation of -the horrors of war. - -But when Men and Gods are thus at variance, the Gods fail; and the -council of heaven having broken up, the war of earth went on. - - - - -CHAPTER XXVII. - - -[Illustration] - -First Koree, unmindful of the counsel of the skies, moved forward, and, -fearing neither Gods nor Monkeys, sought to begin the battle. - -He stood in the plain between the two armies, like an oak in an open -field between two forests. Breathing defiance to the Lali, he called out: - -“Who dares to meet me of all your hosts, and ward off death from his brow -when I discharge this dart, the swift avenger of my wrong?” - -Him seeing, and not fearing, the great Tree-climber of the mountains ran -to meet, he who had often pulled the tails of cats, and grinned at larger -beasts. Stopping often, and then starting again, like a great river that -now rushes with violence, and then stops and whirls in an eddy, (showing -commotion in its stop as in its onward course), he, seeming irresolute, -plunged at last at Koree, having eluded his missiles, and seized him with -hands and teeth. Hair and blood flew from Koree, who in turn sent a blow -to Tree-climber’s ribs, which loosed his ribs and no less his fingers -and teeth from Koree’s flesh; and the great warriors, bleeding and -aching, flew apart. They stood, frowning like two mountain peaks about -to fall with a crash upon each other, but were stayed in their rage by a -return of Fear, the destroyer of battles. Both having enough, and being -uncertain what it would be to get more, went back, one to the west like -the sun, and the other to the east like a shadow; and there was a lull in -the storm. - -[Illustration: KOREE’S CHALLENGE.] - -Then Kimpoo, the skunk-scented, rising among the Lali, went forth, -breathing war from his extended nostrils, and, scratching first his thigh -and then his ribs, said in defiant tones: - -“Invaders of our homes! go back to disgrace, or come forth to death.” - -So saying he threw a cocoanut which grazed the ear of Duco, calling forth -a little blood and a big howl, and then passed on and struck the stomach -of Pounder, producing only a grunt. - -Then High-tail, the Wood-pecker hunter, ran forth, he who knew all the -holes in Possum Grove, and smelt at many and was sad. Aiming at Kimpoo -a marrow bone, he threw it with such force, that, whistling through the -air, it was heard but not seen. It entered his head where a flea had left -a bite at early dawn; and as the bone went in his soul went out. Down he -fell with a crash, as when a mountain fir is broken in the storm. - -Then Ilko, a friend of the slain ape and lover of huckle berries, rushed -forth to avenge his death, and, aiming a stone at the head of High-tail, -threw it with such precision that death entered where he struck, and the -losses between the two forces were equal. - -Then seeing that Death was to be the companion of this War, and uncertain -which army would survive, Koree invoked the aid of Shoozoo. - -“Great spirit of the skies and Swamp, God and Alligator,” he said, “teach -us to conquer on this field or to run away in time. May our arms be -stronger than the enemy, or our feet swifter than Death.” - -And then rushing out he called on any of the Lali to come forth to meet -him in battle, and particularly Ilo, the robber of his pleasures. - -But Ilo was sitting afar off with Sosee, guarding her against escape -and the seductions of Oboo his rival, and he heard not the challenge to -battle. - -But Owl-catcher heard, and, fired with anger and a desire for glory, went -forth to meet him. On all fours he went, looking up at times as he ran -and rising on his feet to survey the field. - -Koree, advancing, threw a sharpened flint at him, aiming at where the -hair is parted on the brow, and there it entered. The distant Alps -disappeared from the eyes of Owl-catcher, and, as all things faded from -his sight, he knew not whether the world or a monkey was collapsing. - -Now Ilo, hearing that he was challenged, came to the fight; but not -willingly. Sosee had demanded that he play not the coward; for love -cannot follow the timorous. But whether she deeply designed that he -should die or be victor, none could fathom. He came to the front and met -the proud Koree who said: - -“I have a plentiful supply of death for the Lali, and for you I will send -it on this bone;” and he discharged a split marrow-bone at his breast. -It was one that Sosee had sharpened while they talked together of love -and acted out their conversation, and she had graved on it, with a bear’s -tooth, the wing of a dragon fly. - -This marrow-bone pierced the flesh of Ilo, but not his love-tickled -heart; and he ran away screaming and bleeding, not wishing to die while -in the joys of his first love. - -He sought out Sosee in the distance, who showered her compassion, if not -her affection, upon him; and she drew the bone from his breast, when, -seeing it was the weapon of Koree which her own hands had fashioned, she -was thrown into consternation. - -“Is my lover fighting my lover?” she asked, “and do I make the weapons -that slay them?” and she rushed to the scene of battle and came between -the lines. - -At the sight of Sosee a shout arose from the Ammi, who thought that -she had escaped, or else that the Lali, fearing their defeat, were -surrendering her. Koree ran to meet her, forgetful that the battle was -raging, when, being about to grasp her in his arms, he was struck by a -cocoanut in the ear, which had been thrown by Tree-jumper, an ape from -the Bamboo plains, who had started in her pursuit. Koree fell to the -ground, stunned by the stroke of the ape and the sight of his beloved, -for the double blow on his eye and ear exhausted him, being already weary -from strife. But he fell unhurt, and was picked up by friends and carried -to a place of safety. - -Sosee, however, was seized by Tree-jumper, and taken back to the Lali, -who placed her far from the front, where she was safe from both death and -rescue. - - - - -CHAPTER XXVIII. - - -[Illustration] - -Now the battle raged on all sides. Not one but many went forth from each -army, and were engaged in groups fighting hand to hand, or throwing -missiles. The sudden appearance of Sosee, which revived the hopes of the -Ammi, who thought the girl and the end of the war were both within their -grasp, increased their fury when they saw her followed by a captor, and a -general rush was made to take the field and the girl by storm. - -First Pounder entered the combat, and was met by an ape from the north -country. This ape was descended from a long line of heroes; Sookaloo was -his father, who had fought bumble-bees in the meadows about the great -springs, and there the bones of his kindred repose. This ape, advancing -to meet Pounder, drew the battle toward him. Both clenched and opened -their jaws, and soon both were in each other’s arms and teeth. Anger and -strength met in Pounder, and were united for the death of his antagonist. -But this was delayed awhile, and struggles, growls and blood were -yielded instead. Then weakness followed, and at last darkness gathered -about the eyes of the ape; his thoughts took flight, and quiet settled -over him even in battle. - -Striding over his body Pounder now rushed on to new conquests, impatient -for more strife. A great gorilla-like monster next met him, approaching -from afar. With thoughts of death in his eye, he came walking on his -hands, swinging his great body between them, like a huge kettle between -two posts. He appeared to be walking and sitting at once. - -“Come you to bring new honor to these arms?” said Pounder. “I will soon -bear your death about me as a trophy, and those that I send out of the -world will not be lonely beyond the Swamp.” - -As when Day and Night meet at dawn, and, in hot contest redden the whole -sky with blood, and, Night being slain, Day moves on over the sky in -undisputed and undivided sway, so these mighty heroes met, and in the -battle the ape was overcome and sank from the contest, while Pounder, -rising like the sun from the death of Night, marched on victorious over -the scene, and was lord of the field. - -On again rushed Pounder, like Hector at Troy; and the Apes, seeing their -warriors fall at his strokes, feared to engage him in single combat. - -“Let us attack him together,” they said; and two great apes stood up to -meet him, like twin mountain peaks approached by a storm. One met his -fist with his eye and saw no more that day; the other seized his arm and -in that grasp laid hold of Death, whom none survive; and as he fell the -dull earth reëchoed the crash to the mountains, which he alone did not -hear. - -Terror now took hold of all that beheld the mighty Pounder, and they fled -from his advance as peasants working in a field flee from an approaching -flood, some to be overtaken and destroyed, and others to escape to a safe -place in the highlands. Pounder now chased, instead of fought, the Apes, -hunting for a foe with whom to measure his strength and with difficulty -finding one. - -At last Ilo, recovering from his wound, but not his rage, rushed again to -the field, (impelled also by Sosee), and, seeing the advance of Pounder, -which drove the Apes before him, met him with a stone, (which reaches -further than an ape’s arm). Forth into the air, like Iris from the -command of Jove, rushed this messenger of wrath, and, singing a battle -cry as it went, it struck Pounder in the breast; when out went his breath -and up went his feet—but only for awhile. Pounder arose again, but, being -unable to fight, was carried back by his comrades; and again the fight -went on without him, to his great disappointment. - -The Apes, encouraged by the arrest of the flood of death, now returned to -the field, and everywhere were single fights. Stones, cocoanuts, gourds -and bones flew through the air. Cries and groans mingled with growls, and -which was man and which was monkey could not be discerned in the battle. - -Finger-at-his-nose, an ape from the shores lying to the south, where his -ancestors fished for crabs with their tails, and made mighty grimaces -while waiting for a bite, scraped the face of Stretch-mouth with a shell, -and was put to flight with a club in hands of Abroo; and, as he ran a -shower of stones followed him, and he thought the crabs of all the Swamp -were pulling at him. - -Then High-climber, who was quick to look around and unfriendly to -mosquitos, advanced from among the Apes with a cocoanut in his hand. This -cocoanut he had pulled in a dense grove at sunset and hid at the foot of -a palm, where a buzzard was feeding on an aurochs. The buzzard dug it -up and carried it to a mountain crag, where Imko, finding it, brought -it to the camp of the Lali. There High-climber, seeing it, again took -possession of it and slew Imko the supposed thief. With this cocoanut, -High-climber, aiming at the head of Frog-catcher, struck him where the -nose separates the eyes, like the mountains of Caucasus between two great -seas. Frog-catcher fell and one less Ammi was left to propagate the new -race. - -Then Watch-the-Girls, furious with rage, rushed forth, and, with a sharp -stone and loud shout, mixed in the fight. Ape after ape fell before her, -wounded or scared. Like a she-wolf tearing the fold she ran about dealing -destruction, while the timid flock fled on all sides, or gathered in -groups too frightened to flee. One, Bushy-face thought to resist her, -and, turning, aimed a dart at her bright eye. But, too dazzled or too -terrified to aim, he missed his mark, when, from the same eye, she sent -a dart of defiance and from her hand a stone. Both struck the eye which -aimed the first blow, and back went retribution on the wrong intended. -Down sank Bushy-face in darkness, and away went all things from his view. -To the world the monkey was no more, and to the monkey the world was no -more; and which was destroyed has never been settled between them. - -Then off in the distance was heard a great chorus of screams, while a -rush of all the Apes to that quarter drew the battle with it. The girls, -who had been led to the war by Watch-the-Girls, then thought to enter the -fight. They had been restrained by their leader; but now, impetuous, they -rushed against the enemy; whom seeing, the salacious Apes, enamoured of -the daughters of Men, and forgetting their anger in their lust, gave up -the battle for a rape, and rushed upon the girls to make them prisoners. -The girls, scorning to be carried away instead of attacked, (having come -to fight and not to be wooed), struggled hard with their captors, but -more from pride than desire. - -Then all the Ammi, seeing that their girls were about to be taken, -transferred the war to that quarter, and fought for their own, instead -of against the enemy. Inspired by jealousy as well as rage, the battle -now waxed fiercer, as when to a raging fire is added the wind, and the -conflagration spreads into a forest. Death moved about rapidly over the -field, visiting now a man and now an ape, and calling him to the Walhalla -beyond the Swamp; and the plain was scattered with his victims. - - - - -CHAPTER XXIX. - - -[Illustration] - -Oboo, hearing there was a fight for girls, now came forward to take part. -He had till now sulked in the rear, because of Ilo’s good fortune in -possessing Sosee. Defeated in love, and still smarting from his wounds, -he had refused, like Achilles, to fight, and, nursing his wrath afar off, -desired the defeat of the Lali. He had long insisted that Sosee should be -restored to the Ammi, and the war ended. But, as others continued it, he -persisted in his absence, even when the Lali were in danger of rout and -their possessions of loss. Many had fallen on account of his inaction. -Oft did the chiefs approach him to assuage his wrath. But the volcanic -fires in his breast refused to be cooled, and awaited their time to burst -out and destroy his rivals. An ape will not waste himself on an enemy -when he has a rival for his anger. - -But hearing that there was to be a capture of girls, his anger melted -into lust, and he relented. What neither the North Wind nor the Rain -could do the warmth within him sufficed to accomplish—it moved his -mighty will. For dread War, stalking over the land and breathing his hot -breath in his face, had failed to arouse him. Mightier Reason, borne on -the tongue of Pity, could not move him. Even Glory had no allurements to -draw him from his retreat. But Beauty, which now visited him in fancies, -tickled him into action; and, like the needle following the invisible -pole, he went, strongly impelled, to the scene of battle, where to his -thoughts a field was pictured with delights. - -Rumor went abroad, and everywhere proclaimed to the female Apes that the -great Oboo was coming to battle, and many hearts beat at the prospect of -beholding him. Young women and maidens came to see, nor did the old stay -away. Many who had an interest in him past, present or future, sought to -look on; and those who could not be moved by love came from curiosity. - -With majestic step their hero advanced. Not as the common warrior comes -came he forth. Slowly like the Morning, he advanced to the eyes of a -wondering world. A female ape had parted his locks in the morning and -picked the burrs from his shaggy limbs; and, as he stood out against the -sky, his form was a monument of beauty to both the women and himself. - -Looking to one side and then to the other, (not to reconnoitre, but to -receive the admiration of the females) he reflected, as he shook his -slender legs, that they who now beheld him with solicitude would receive -him back with gratitude. Victory seemed assured in his bearing, and, like -the sun at noon, he dazzled the hosts with his splendor. - -Such was the appearance of the mighty Oboo on entering the field; and as -he advanced the eastern zephyrs moved through his louse-less locks, and -his brow, like the forest-crowned head of Mt. Ida, seemed glorified. - -Him seeing from afar the great Boomboo, calling all the Gods to his aid, -ran forth to meet. “O Shoozoo,” he cried, “lend me all the heavens with -their fires and loud thunders to match this terror of the plains, the -wrath-inflamed fighter of men and lover of women; and to-night I will -devote to you a live dragon fly caught where the thistles of the Swamp do -bloom and the bats are sleeping.” - -So saying he seized a big water-melon, such as two men of our day could -not lift, and he raised it in mid air. It was a melon which had grown on -the sandy banks of Alligator Swamp; three generations had eaten fruit -from that spot, and cast the seeds along the wide-reaching shore. This -great water-melon the mighty Boomboo smashed on the head of Oboo. For, -throwing it with great force, he sent it heavily through the air, as when -a huge rock is thrown convulsively from a volcano. A great flying terror -it went, casting a moving shadow over the earth; and it went not in vain; -but, descending from its flight, it struck the well-picked head of Oboo, -and dreadful was the sound of the thud. - -Bursting with a quake, as when the earth opens, it was scattered in -countless pieces, never to be again united. Pulp and rind and seeds were -splattered over his brow and well-smoothed locks, and the juice ran down -over his face, and covered his hairy chest, and flowed from his limbs -to the ground. Dripping and sticky the proud Oboo, like a half-drowned -rat crawling out of a well, sneaked away, unfit to be seen, and would no -longer match his prowess against the Ammi in battle. - -[Illustration: THE RETREAT OF THE LALI.] - -Inextinguishable laughter arose among the men; while even among -the Lali there was merriment. The females were most amused at the -seed-besplattered lover; and Ilo, glad in his heart at his inglorious -retreat, said with contempt: - -“Go back to the women and get dried up; you were made not for war, but -for love.” - -Like a bubble blown by a boy, which swells bigger and bigger, until the -sky and mountains are reflected in it, and then, at the moment of its -greatest bulk, when it seems to carry the whole world, bursts and settles -into a little suds, so the swelling Oboo, who matched the sun in its -splendor when he came to battle, dwindled to a sop as he returned. - -Meanwhile the girls who had been drawn into the battle, and for whom Oboo -had left his retreat, fought so fiercely that none of them were captured, -but many of their assailants were slain or left wounded on the field. - -And now all the Lali retreated from the victorious Ammi, being -demoralized by the victory of the girls and the discomfiture of Oboo, -while the Ammi prepared to move with all their force on the Lali and to -end the war that day. - -But Night settled down on the contending armies, and the wheels of -history stopped awhile. - - - - -CHAPTER XXX. - - -[Illustration] - -Sleep came not to the Ammi that night, but instead Pestilence settled -down upon them. The water of the Swamp, stirred by the recent floods, -and the strange fruits which they had eaten since leaving home, had -brought Colic to the camp, and, like Dreams, it visited the couches of -the heroes, and rolled them about in aches and pains. Night slackened its -pace and dwelt long among them, covering with darkness their pain; and, -as they ran about holding their stomachs and looking for sweet relief, -which came not, the Lali, who faintly discerned their movements in the -moonlight, thought they were making preparations for battle, and so they -fled, lest disaster should follow on their defeat of the day before. Thus -did the Lali run away from the Belly-ache. - -And when Aurora, closing the gates of the world on Night, advanced, -announcing with freshened breath the Day, and her golden train fell in -rich drapery over the eastern sky, the Ammi were seen lying about in -groups, doubled up and griping, each caring not for glorious victory but -for peace within. Koree forgot his beloved Sosee, and Pounder lay in a -big heap, caring neither for battle nor country. - -Gimbo walking about on all fours administered relief, being physician as -well as priest. - -“There is nothing so good for colic,” he said, “as to pound the stomach;” -and, taking a long-necked pumpkin, he gave each a blow on the spot where -the pain was felt. This caused the patient to give a jerk and a howl. - -“That is good;” said Gimbo, “it is the colic jumping out of you;” and in -very bad cases he repeated the blow. - -“It is well,” he added, “to keep your stomachs turned toward the Swamp; -the colic always goes out on that side, owing to the influence of the -Alligator.” - -He also applied the wing of a dragon fly to those who had not yet -contracted the complaint, with a view to keep it away. - -“When the colic sees this sign of Shoozoo,” he said, “it is afraid to -come near you.” - -There were no hostilities that day, the Lali being kept back by fear and -the Ammi by colic. - -On the morning following, when Pain and Fear had fled from both camps, -the combatants were far apart. The Lali had retreated either for safety -or preparations, and the Ammi had the field, but were without an enemy -either to fight or treat with for peace. - -Anxiety now took the place of colic in their breasts, and uncertainty -about what the Lali were devising made them hesitate about their own -course. - -Meanwhile other matters came to occupy their attention. - -“I have long noticed,” said Gimbo, “that it is getting colder. Walking -on four feet I learn things sooner than others. I used to walk without -discomfort to my hands. But now the ground is so cold that I can hardly -stand it with either feet or hands. I must get up a tree to keep warm, or -else go into a hole.” - -Others had observed the same change. In fact it was the sudden cold, -coming the night before, that helped bring on the colic just mentioned. -It disturbed the temperature of the body, and the first inconvenience -from sudden changes of climate was felt by mankind. - -Nor was this a small matter. The first Glacial Period had set in. That -great catastrophe which, at the end of the Tertiary Age, covered the -northern hemisphere with mountains of ice, burying the earth out of -sight, and destroying all life, was beginning to make itself felt. - -Farther to the north, (as they heard), the progress of the cold was well -under way, but now its influence first reached the Ammi. - -“What is that?” asked several at once, directing their attention to the -sky. - -A snow storm had come. It was the first snow that had fallen in those -regions, and was a stranger to both Men and Apes. - -“It’s the clouds coming down from the sky,” said one; “they have broken -in pieces and are falling.” - -“It is blossoms from the trees in heaven,” said Koree, who had grown -sentimental from long thinking about Sosee; “Shoozoo is shaking them -down as he runs through the forests after owls.” - -“I think it is dragon flies,” said Gimbo, who observed the form of the -flakes. “There is here the short-beam and the long-beam. Surely Shoozoo -is coming to the earth, and we ought to be very devout.” - -Among the Lali the snow produced still greater consternation. Some said -it was the white form of Simlee, the wife of Shoozoo, who was coming to -the Apes; and all agreed that it came on account of the war between the -Apes and the Men. In as much as a snow-flake, when examined, was seen to -turn to water, a priest of the Lali remarked that it was going back to -Shoozoo, the great reservoir, or Swamp, into which all things at last -return. - -Suddenly there was a tremendous rush of arctic animals over both camps, -and all the country, as far as the eye could reach, was alive with them. -They came from the north where the heavy snows had started a migration -southward. Aurochs, reindeer, Irish elk and other kinds now extinct, -were in the herds. They rushed pell-mell before the snows, tramping down -everything in their way, and falling over one another, like a stampede of -buffaloes or wild horses. Many were trampled to death or else left maimed -in their trail. Mingled among them were lions, leopards and other savage -beasts, which followed them for food, or were also migrating to a warmer -climate; so that there was a slaughter of many kinds in the herds. It -seemed to the Ammi as if all the beasts had gone to war, as well as the -Men and Apes, and were marching in great armies and fighting constant -battles. - -“The Sky and the North are both pouring out their forces upon us,” said -Abroo. - -“Let us catch them, and keep them for food,” said Oko, who had been -trying to tame a calf of the Urus which he had captured, thus beginning -the work of domestication, which the descendants of the Ammi have -continued till now. - -“It is better to let them go,” said Koree, who picked up the clubs and -missiles which they had scattered; “we ought to be glad to be rid of -them.” - -For some of the Ammi had been trampled to death in the stampede, so that -this incursion of cattle upon them was nearly as destructive as the war. - -After the herds had gone by, they were seen to spread out over the plains -in the direction from which the Ammi had come to the seat of war. There -they found grass and were leisurely grazing. - -“It looks,” said Abroo, “as if they had come to stay, so that when we -return from the war they will dispute the possession of Cocoanut Hill -with us.” - -The snow, however, continued to fall, which, like the curse of the -wandering Jew, was to give the fugitives no rest. - - - - -CHAPTER XXXI. - - -[Illustration] - -Meanwhile the Lali who had been worsted in the war, and whose defeat even -the gallant Oboo could not avert, determined on a change of tactics. -Recognizing their inferiority as combatants (being not so generally armed -or so skilled in the use of arms as the Ammi), they resolved to make up -in numbers what they lacked in skill; and so they sent out ambassadors -and summoned all the apes from the countries beyond, shrewdly using the -respite of the last few days from battle to collect allies. - -Out into the forests and among the palm groves, therefore, they went, -calling to the inhabitants of the trees and vines to come down, and -sending their summons into the tangled thickets of the swamps. And the -apes left their cocoanuts and cinnamon branches, and came up out of their -fisheries, (abandoning their sports with parrots, and their fights with -owls,) and hurried to the country of the Lali and the seat of war. - -The Apes were far more numerous than the men, the latter being only -one colony in the whole world, who were now all collected on one field -of battle, whereas the Apes, though differing from one another, (being -of many species besides the Man-apes,) were practically without limit -(taking in all the country and all the varieties of Apes,) so that it was -only a question of how wide a territory they should scour for allies, in -order to bring any number to battle. - -These apes, moreover, could be easily united on almost any project, as -there were yet no conflicting interests to dissuade them; so that in a -short time an innumerable host was assembled at the seat of war—great, -small, tailless, speechless and everything from the big gorilla to the -common monkey. - -To add to the good fortune of the Lali, there had come also, along with -the migrating cattle, several large herds of apes from the north. These, -which at another time would have met the hostility of the Lali, and -perhaps been slain as enemies, or as competitors for their food, were now -welcomed and enlisted as allies against the Ammi. - -But the Apes, though countless, were not so closely confederated as the -Men. They did not live together in large numbers, and the few groups that -did exist were not accustomed to act long together. In fact the Apes -hardly knew one another, so that they were unconscious alike of their -power and their weakness. - -The forces of the two armies were, therefore, woefully unequal. On one -side was a host as countless as the Myrmidons, composed, indeed, of -motley groups, which might prove unmanageable in war, but which had to -fight in order to cohere at all, and to fight soon. On the other side was -a small, but skilled and disciplined body, more homogeneous and capable -of keeping to a fixed purpose. It was obvious, therefore, that if the -Apes should make a sudden attack they would overwhelm and extirpate the -Ammi; for then, all the hosts would take part, and, being impulsive, -would fight vigorously before having time to fall to pieces as a body. - -It became as important, therefore, for the Ammi to now have a delay of -hostilities as it was before for the Lali. This fact, however, was not -known to the Ammi themselves, who, on account of the distance between the -two forces, were not aware of the reinforcements of the Lali. - -“Let us proceed at once against the enemy,” said Koree, innocently -inviting his own destruction. “They have retreated so far that it may -take some time to find them.” - -“That’s right,” said Pounder, “we should begin early so that Night may -not again overtake us before victory.” - -“Come then,” said Koree, “this day will decide——” - -Here there was a great surprise. As they were about to march to battle, -and to their own destruction, Sosee burst in upon them, followed by a -strange ape, both nearly breathless from running. - -Koree uttered a shout of joy, and ran to meet her. Others seeing her -pursued, seized the ape that followed her, and were about to slay him -when Sosee caused them to desist. - -“He is a friend, and has helped me to come hither,” she said. - -And then, without regarding the expressions of joy on the part of Koree -and others over her return, she called out loudly: - -“Retreat! Hide in the woods!—and be quick!” - -This was startling to the Ammi, who believed they were on the eve of -complete victory. - -She informed them of the countless hosts that had joined the Lali, who -expected to move immediately on the Ammi and destroy them entirely. - -“If you can retreat long enough to delay the battle,” she said, “you may -be saved. I heard the counsels of the Lali chiefs, and they agree that -if they do not fight at once their forces can not be held together, but, -being composed of different tribes of Apes, unused to discipline, will -break up in confusion.” - -Sosee then told of her escape, which was undertaken as the only means of -saving the Ammi, and accomplished at the risk of her own life. - -She had been guarded, she said, by Ilo, Oboo and another, and so -could not escape but by the greatest cunning and good fortune. Ilo, -however, being engaged this day in the council of war, could not watch -her closely, while Oboo, having become interested in some female apes -belonging to the new comers, had wandered off after them, so that she was -left practically alone. Being thus at liberty she persuaded the remaining -guard,—a simple ape who did not understand his business,—to accompany -her in a race, when she adroitly led him to the camp of the Ammi, and so -escaped. - -[Illustration: SOSEE WARNS THE AMMI.] - -On hearing her story, Koree, overjoyed at his good fortune and Sosee’s, -said: - -“There is reason in what she says. Let us retreat.” - -For Koree, having now received back Sosee, did not care what became of -the war, but was ready for peace at any price. - -Pounder, however, objected. - -“I’m not afraid of all the Apes between here and sunrise,” he said, “and -I am for fighting them. I’ll kill the big ones with the little ones.” - -Others, however, more prudent, agreed with Koree, and it was decided to -follow the advice of Sosee. - -So the whole force of the Ammi prepared to move back into the Swamp. - -“Let us take everything with us,” said Oko. “We may need it when we get -away.” - -“Delay for nothing,” said Sosee, “or you will not get yourselves away.” - -Soon, therefore, they started on their retreat; when Sosee remarked: - -“I must now go back to the Lali.” - - - - -CHAPTER XXXII. - - -[Illustration] - -These words of Sosee, “I must now go back to the Lali,” caused more -surprise to the Ammi than her sudden appearance among them had done. - -“There is something unfathomable in that girl,” said Pounder. “We -undertook this war for her, and now, when we have obtained her, she wants -to go back to the enemy. I fear she has been won over to the Apes by -flattery, or a new lover, and comes back as a spy. Don’t let her return.” - -“I wonder,” observed Koree to himself, “if she really has a new lover.” - -“If I do not go back,” she said, “all I have told you will be in vain. If -the Lali, who do not yet know that I am here, should learn of my escape, -they will attack you at once, suspecting that I have communicated their -designs to you; and then all will be lost.” - -“If you go,” replied Koree, “all will be lost at any rate—to me.” - -And Koree insisted that see should not return. - -“I do not believe her story,” said Pounder, “and I insist that we keep -our ground and also keep her. Otherwise she may carry back information to -the enemy.” - -“I think too,” said Koree, “that we should not give up what we came for. -If we go back without her our escape will not be worth the making.” - -Others thought it best to let her return, so that a dispute arose and -finally a quarrel. Koree, however, prevailed; and so, against her will, -she was compelled to fall in line and enter the Swamp with the rest. - -But though Koree gained her possession he did not gain her consent. She -refused to be reconciled to him, and insisted during the retreat that she -be allowed to return. - -“I know,” said Koree to himself, “that she has another lover. But she -will soon forget him, and I will keep her now that I have her. She will -be more easily won back to me in my presence than in my absence.” - -But Sosee, thus forced to remain, proved an enemy to him rather than a -lover. - -“I hate you,” she said, “and will never live with you if you do not let -me go back.” - -“You will never live with me if I do,” he replied. - -“I can escape again,” she said, “when we have saved the Ammi, and then I -will return to you.” - -“If it required so much time and fighting,” he replied, “to get you once, -how much will it take to get you again?” - -“If I escaped before without your aid, can I not do so again?” - -“I am not sure you will want to come back, with all your ape lovers.” - -“I shall not want to come back to you, if you do not let me go; but to my -mother and Orlee and the rest I will return. If you care for nothing but -your love you are unworthy of mine.” - -But Koree was determined, and would not let her go. - -She thus saw all her unselfish sacrifices about to be defeated by a -selfish lover. - -The conversation of the Ammi now reverted to the probability of her story -and the advisability of their further retreat. - -“Let us wait,” said Abroo, after they had gone some distance into the -Swamp, “till we see the result of the alliances formed by the Apes.” - -“I will wait,” said Pounder, “only on condition that we return and -fight them. If what the girl says is true they will soon fall out among -themselves, so that even the cowardly need not fear them.” - -“What is to be gained by fighting them at all,” asked Oko, “if they have -nothing that we want?” - -“You greedy beast!” returned Pounder, savagely; “is it nothing to -vanquish the Lali? and if all the Monkeys of the forest are collected, is -it nothing to whip them all at once? It is base to make this retreat; and -I have a notion to smash the jaw of the fellow that proposed it.” - -“This is not a retreat,” explained Abroo, calmly, “but a movement to -disable the enemy by delay. We shall be better able to fight when they -are less able to coöperate.” - -And thus the talk went on for hours, when Koree suddenly interrupted it -with the question: - -“Where is Sosee?” - - - - -CHAPTER XXXIII. - - -[Illustration] - -The disappearance of Sosee without anybody knowing it was a new puzzle to -the Ammi. Was she spirited away by some supernatural power? or did she -simply drop out of line into the bushes? These were among the questions -asked. - -“She is a spy,” persisted Pounder, “having first become a traitor.” - -“If her story be true,” observed Abroo, “she thinks more of her people -than of her lover, and is a great heroine to thus sacrifice her love to -save her race.” - -“Whatever be the facts,” said Koree, not appreciating this kind of -unselfishness, “let us search for her. If she be a spy she should not -return to the enemy, and if she be a heroine she should not be lost to -us.” - -“In either case,” said Pounder, “you want to get her for yourself, and do -not care what becomes of the war.” - -“Let us first make ourselves safe,” said Abroo, “and then talk of finding -her. In this great Swamp with its endless entanglement of bushes, we -could not find her any sooner than the Lali can find us; whereas if we -save ourselves from the danger she describes, we must retreat farther at -once.” - -“I shall search for Sosee,” said Koree, “and will return to you only when -I find her.” - -So saying Koree left the rest of the Ammi and started back to find his -beloved, taking several friends with him. - -They were soon lost in the wilderness; but by the position of the sun -they kept their steps bent in the direction of the Lali. - -“There is only one course that she could take,” said he; “whether she go -as a spy or to a lover, she will seek the Lali by the most direct route, -and in either case I want her, and want her soon; so let us head her off.” - -Swift then through the wilds they pressed back, pushing aside the bushes, -wading in the marshes, jumping over fallen trees, and picking out a -possible route through an almost impassable country. When they came to -an open place, they reconnoitred. Now and then they met a serpent or -alligator, and continually they feared more savage beasts, whose cries -were heard around them. - -“This is a terrible wilderness for Sosee to pass through,” observed -Koree, “but if she is going to meet a rival, or betray the Ammi, I don’t -know whether I want her to get through.” - -“We will at least reach the Lali first,” said one of his companions. - -“I am not sure of that,” replied Koree. “Sosee is swift of foot, and -finds her way better than anyone I know.” - -Soon they came upon some straggling apes, but as these differed somewhat -from the Lali they paid little attention to them, thinking they were -chance hunters in the thickets. - -These apes, however, were soon met so frequently, and finally became so -numerous, that Koree remarked: - -“I wonder if they are not some of the new comers of which Sosee spoke.” - -Presently he climbed a tree, from which he looked beyond the confines of -the Swamp, where he saw an innumerable swarm of apes, filling all the -country about the habitations of the Lali. So many animals he had never -before seen together. His worst suspicions were, therefore, confirmed. - -“Sosee has, indeed, reported the truth,” he said; “such a multitude would -have overwhelmed the Ammi in one attack, and left nothing remaining of -the human race.” - -Hurrying down, therefore, from the tree, he called on his comrades to -turn back to the Ammi. - -“Let us return and take precautions for our safety,” he said; “soon those -apes will scatter, or kill one another off; no country can long support -such a number.” - -“But what about Sosee?” asked his companions. - -“We cannot find her in this Swamp,” replied Koree; “and, as her story of -the reinforcements of the Apes is true, the rest is not incredible, so -that her return to them may be necessary for our safety.” - -Now, therefore, for the first time, did Koree appreciate the heroism of -Sosee; and the sacrifice of her lover seemed magnanimous when it was -clear that it was not for another lover. - -They retraced their steps, therefore, and before night were again with -the main body of the Ammi, to whom they related what they had seen. - -“Where is Sosee,” asked one. - -“We have not seen her,” replied Koree, “but we found her true, which -is more important;” for Koree before his search had begun to doubt the -faithfulness of his beloved, which he was now glad to establish, even at -the expense of her possession. - -As night settled down on the Ammi in the Swamp a great light appeared in -the north, an object of beauty and terror to them. The sky was illumined -with brilliant and changing rays, like a sunrise at midnight. The heavens -seemed to be on fire, and the conflagration to be approaching the earth. -It was one of those gigantic electric storms which swept over the ancient -world and vied with the earthquakes, mountain upheavals, and deluges of -the period, when the Earth still acted as a whole. Night and Day were -apparently in conflict, mixing great fields of light with alternate -streaks of darkness, and chasing each other over the whole heavens. - -“What can this mean?” asked several at once. - -“The Fire-monster is sweeping down upon us, as well as the Monkeys,” -answered one; “he has already seized the heavens.” - -“It don’t mean any good,” said Gimbo; “Shoozoo is angry, and has sent his -winged Alligator to destroy us. I will get the dragon-fly which cured us -of the colic.” - -Wearied, however, they soon sank to rest, and lying under an open sky, -which seemed all on fire, they slept, and their dreams that night were -disturbed equally by fears of the Aurora and of monkeys. - - - - -CHAPTER XXXIV. - - -[Illustration] - -Several times during the night strange sounds were heard. Once they -were all aroused, thinking the Lali were upon them. At another time -they thought a wild beast was prowling near them, and again that they -heard sounds made by the Aurora Borealis. Near morning, when the first -glimmer of light appeared, there was a rush in the direction from which -came an ominous growl. One after another followed the leader to learn -the cause of it. In their haste the foremost stumbled on a huge living -object, which nearly frightened him to death; while the rest, in their -impetuosity, fell over the same thing, so that soon there was a great -heap of living humanity and wild confusion. - -All wondered what had thrown them, and, to increase their wonderment, the -object did not move, but seemed indifferent to the tumbling which they -did upon him. They were afraid to approach, until the light should become -stronger; for they did not as yet have candles to guide them at night, -but had to wait for the day, or else grope in darkness. As it dawned, -however, and things became more distinguishable, one, more venturesome -than the rest, advanced, and, to his relief, found that it was Pounder, -who was rolled up in a heap, and lay before them dead drunk. - -Among the roots dug up and eaten by the Ammi, was a species of mandrake, -which had a stupefying effect. Pounder had become fond of this root, or -rather of its effects, and he carried it about with him for occasional -indulgence. His addiction to the habit was, perhaps, the cause of his -quarrelsomeness; for he frequently quarrelled with others, although this -was, perhaps, the first case of well-defined spree known to humanity. - -Several of the Ammi, thinking he was dead, rolled him over, and repeated -the rolling several times. - -“He is only sleeping,” said one; “see how he breathes;” and they shook -him to wake him. - -Presently his eyes opened, when another exclaimed: - -“He is neither dead nor asleep, but sick; perhaps he is dying. Call -Gimbo.” - -Soon Gimbo, who was doctor, priest and prophet, all in one, approached -with his dragon-fly and long-necked pumpkin, and, after a brief -examination, in which he looked mysteriously wise, said: - -“It comes from the colic;” and, with these words, he seized the neck of -the pumpkin, and with the big end pounded the stomach of his patient, -adding: “This will fetch the colic out of him.” - -Pounder first grunted, then groaned, and at last opened his eyes. - -Gimbo, seeing this effect, congratulated himself, and went on pounding, -saying, “He is coming out all right.” - -Pounder who neither understood nor enjoyed this treatment, raised himself -half up, and, to the surprise of all, dealt Gimbo a powerful blow with -his fist, saying, “Get out you old four-footed ape with your big pumpkin!” - -He then sank back in his stupor, but placed his hand on his stomach for -protection. - -Gimbo, picking himself up, said: - -“The disease acts strangely; but he is gaining strength, and will soon be -well.” - -He did not recur to the pumpkin treatment, however, but relied henceforth -on the dragon-fly for a cure, which he applied at a distance. - -The Ammi now gathered about Pounder, and, with astonishment on their -faces, contemplated the change that had come over him. The mightiest of -their number was seen lying before them the weakest and silliest. It -disgusted them that he should so put himself out of his own power, as to -be at the mercy of the smallest monkey, and especially that he who could -fight so bravely should grin and puke so contemptibly. - -But these discussions did not interest Pounder, who slept on unmindful of -his glory or his disgrace. - -About this time the Ammi were again heard complaining of the cold, which -had been rapidly increasing since the snow storm mentioned, and they cast -about for devices to reduce its discomforts. - -At night they sought the leeward side of trees and hills; they also went -into caves and huddled up closely to keep warm. But this did not suffice. -They were cold both by day and night, and every one sought other means of -warming. - -From the habit of covering themselves with leaves when sleeping, the -thought was suggested, that if they could surround themselves with leaves -during the day they might be more comfortable at all times. - -“The difficulty is to make the leaves stick together,” said Abroo; “let -us fasten them by their stems, or string them on blades of grass.” - -Soon a garment of leaves and grass was woven in this way, which was the -beginning of clothing and of the vast dry-goods interest of the world. - -Up to this time the Men, like the Apes, had been naked. They had found no -use for clothing; the climate was warm, and the feeling of shame had not -yet entered their breasts. They were covered with hair, which grew longer -since they had come north; and, though this furnished some protection, -and was highly appreciated since the cold weather set in, it was not -sufficient for their comfort. Some had longer hair than others, and so -stood the change better, while those of little or short hair often fell -sick and died of colds, rheumatism, and other winter complaints. The -invention of clothing, however, equalized their condition again, so that -long hair was deemed of no special advantage. - -The leaf-garments, however, did not long satisfy them. They could not -make a fabric of such materials that would stand the rough usage to -which it was subjected. In their running, climbing and other violent -exercises the wreaths broke or became detached, so that it was difficult -to keep them on. One’s whole suit sometimes fell off in an instant, -leaving him in his skin and hair. - -“Bark, I think, would do better than leaves,” said Koree, who had made -himself a suit of the inner rind of a tree. He found this so rough, -however, that it soon wore off the hair and skin in places, so that he -looked like a horse galled by the harness. - -“Pound the bark to make it soft,” said Watch-the-girls, who had made a -neat garment for herself from well-selected strips of bark, from which -she had removed the rough spots. - -“Skins would keep us warm; and they are soft,” said another woman, who -had placed about her shoulders the hide of a sheep which had been used as -a receptacle for darts. - -This was an unfortunate discovery for the animals. For in a little while -the Ammi, finding that skins were more desirable than anything else as a -protection from cold, sought animals for their skins, and killed more for -this purpose than they had before killed for food. - -The use of clothing in time became general, and the Ammi learned the -important lesson that they were independent of the weather, and could -carry their climate about with them, making it to order. - -The use of clothing, however, developed into a dangerous luxury. They -soon came to have preferences, not only on account of warmth and -softness, but on account of appearance. Bright colors were chosen as -most desirable, and those were more in esteem who dressed well. Much of -their time was accordingly given to making garments, especially among the -women, and many bits of decoration were in time added, so that pride and -art were soon developed in dress. - -Pounder, however, always despised dress, and would not put on anything -whatever; and several others, who admired his strength and bravery, were -led to follow his example. Gimbo said it was wrong to dress, and that -if people would only keep on all fours they would not need clothes; so -he, as long as he lived, went naked and on all fours, no matter what the -weather or the occasion. - -But the men went on in their vanity about dress, until they soon wore -more wool than the sheep; and Gimbo complained that something was wrong -when each animal did not wear its own skin. - -Fire-tamer said they might keep warm by getting a wood-eating animal and -keeping it in the camp. - -“While I kept mine,” he said, “I was warm. When he shook himself the Cold -fled affrighted, and would not come near again until he disappeared.” - -“That’s worse than clothes,” said Gimbo; “don’t bring it here, or we will -all be killed and eaten up.” - -“The beast is liable to get loose,” said another, “and attack us any -moment. We have seen what he did at the volcano and in the forest.” - -“I will get a young one,” said Fire-tamer, who thought a small fire was -an immature or half-grown animal, and that it could be easily managed. - -But the Ammi were afraid, and would not allow the beast to be brought to -the camp, dead or alive; and so they went on shivering, and it took them -some time to shiver into sense. - - - - -CHAPTER XXXV. - - -[Illustration] - -The next day Fire-tamer, who had been hunting in the Swamp, returned to -the Ammi, with a piece of burning wood. Having seen a tree struck by -lightning, which was nearly consumed, and thinking he understood the -habits of the beast, he raked in the ashes till he found this brand. -Bringing it with him, he thought, as the fire curled on the end of it, -like a snake, that he had caught a wood-eating animal. - -“There he comes with a little one,” said Koree, as Fire-tamer approached -the Ammi. Gimbo was horrified, and ran away. The rest, though prohibiting -its introduction the day before, had suffered so much during the night -from cold, that they were now willing to give it a trial, which Gimbo -thought very inconsistent in them. - -Fire-tamer laid it down, when, to the surprise of all, it did not run -away. He then brought leaves to feed it, when it flamed up, or became -“mad,” as they thought. None, however, would come near enough to feel its -effects; when they said it was of no use as a warmer. - -[Illustration: THE WOOD-EATING ANIMAL IN THE CAMP OF THE AMMI.] - -“Wait till he shakes himself,” said Fire-tamer, “and you will get a -fanning from his wings that will warm you all over.” - -He then fed the monster with brush, when to the surprise of all, who -now approached with confidence, it ate greedily, and soon warmed them -perceptibly. - -“See how he cracks the bones with his teeth,” said Pounder, in admiration -of its strength, as the fire crackled and the sparks flew. - -“See what a dust he kicks up,” said another, as he observed the smoke. - -A spark at this moment flew out and lighted on Pounder, who gave a growl, -and said the beast had snapped at him. He could scarcely be restrained -from attacking it with his fists. - -All were gratified, however, at the warmth produced; for the day was -cold, and they had not on their clothing, or else did not know how to use -it. They accordingly huddled about the fire, and soon came to regard it -as a necessity. - -“How can we keep it from running away?” asked one, who thought of their -misfortune when they should be without it. - -“How can we take it with us when we move?” asked another. “I would not -like to take hold of it or lead it.” - -“Fire-tamer can catch another,” answered Koree, “for he is skilled as a -hunter of this monster, as well as a manager of it.” - -They wondered most at the voracity of the beast, who ate all the brush -and logs they could carry to him. - -“He grows bigger at once on what he feeds,” said one, as the fire -increased with the supply of several trees; “see how fat he is getting, -and how he struggles at his meals. One would think the tree is alive at -which he is eating, and that he is fighting to kill it, as when a tiger -eats an alligator.” - -When the fire died down, and it was not convenient to get more wood, -Cocoanut-scooper threw in some vegetables and fruits, saying: - -“I wonder if he will eat these. He seems, like a hog, to eat everything.” - -But the fire continued to become less, and all were surprised that it was -fastidious about its food, and would eat nothing but wood. - -More wood was, accordingly, brought, and soon the monster had reached its -full size again. - -“It does not pay to keep this animal,” said Oko; “it takes all our time -to carry food to him. Loose him that, like the urus, he may wander -through the forest and feed himself.” - -“He will eat the whole forest and us too, if he gets loose,” replied -Fire-tamer. - -Several approached so near that they got burned, so that many doubted the -utility of the beast on account of its danger. One who got a whiff of -smoke in the face thought he was being attacked, and discharged a dart at -the monster. - -“I am afraid to sleep at night with this brute in the camp,” said one; -“he will eat us all before morning.” - -“When he appeared last night in the sky,” observed another, referring to -the Aurora, “he did not harm us.” - -The people, however, were divided, some wanting to get rid of him, and -others to keep him. When it got warm the beast became unpopular, which -was about the middle of the day; but as it cooled off toward night, he -was more in favor. - -“He must be thirsty,” said Pounder; “let us bring water and give him a -drink.” - -So saying he went to a pool, and, filling a gourd, poured water on the -fire, which had become low from lack of fuel. The fire immediately went -out, to the surprise of all. - -“He hates water and has run into his hole,” said Pounder. - -“Let us dig him out,” said Koree, who thought he was a kind of woodchuck -that could be easily unearthed. - -On examination, however, they found no hole into which he could have -crawled, and so gave up digging. - -“He will come out of a volcano soon,” said Fire-tamer, “and I shall watch -for him in the mountains.” - -Gimbo was profoundly thankful, however, that he was gone. He had -worshipped him as a god out of fear; but now that water destroyed him, -he worshipped the water instead, as a greater spirit, and he was nearly -converted to the religion of the Lali, who had great faith in the power -of water, and especially of the water of the great Swamp, in which the -winged Alligator dwelt. - -As evening came, however, with its dampness, they again suffered, and -doubt came with their discomforts, and they slept uncertain whether fire -should be the companion of their lives. - -And the night was full of stars and Gimbo of fleas, and as they passed -each other on the way of time the problems of life were unfolding to -reason. - - - - -CHAPTER XXXVI. - - -[Illustration] - -The next day the Ammi were startled at the sight of a strange ape, which -was at first taken for one of the Lali, and they thought that the rest -would soon be upon them. He was soon seen, however, to be of a different -species, and so was allowed to pass unmolested. Next a whole group -of apes appeared; but, as they were small and apparently peaceable, -they produced no consternation. It was deemed best, however, to make a -reconnoisance; and so Pounder and Cocoanut-scooper each climbed a tree to -examine the surrounding country. - -They reported the Swamp full of apes, which wandered about in groups -apparently without purpose. There were generally a male and three or four -females together. - -These were some of the immigrants which had recently come from the -north, and were going south to escape the cold. They had remained a few -days with the Lali, and were now scattering in all directions. The Lali -themselves, they said, had all determined to migrate. - -The Ammi, being therefore relieved of their fears, now determined to -return to the battle-field. For, as the reënforcements of the Lali had -dispersed, they thought they could safely fight them again. - -They accordingly started back toward the Lali with renewed courage. The -cold was still increasing, and the waters of the Swamp through which -they had come were frozen over. For most of the way they walked on ice, -which made their return easy. They found some animals and birds along the -route, which had been frozen to death, of which they ate as they went, -and from which they re-supplied their stores. - -“The cold has made a bridge for us across the waters,” said Koree, “and -we can now walk where we before waded.” - -“True,” said Oko, “but it has taken away the water, and we shall have no -fish, and not even anything to drink.” - -“It has turned the water into stone,” observed another, “and the land -has all been changed into a white foam, so that we shall hereafter have -neither land nor water.” - -The situation was critical indeed. The whole earth seemed about to be -taken from them, or else turned into a new substance, cold, hard and -forbidding. - -“What can we do,” asked Oko, “but migrate like the Lali?” - -“Splash!” “Splash!” “Splash!” - -Such were the sounds now heard in quick succession, and accompanying them -were cries, growls and great confusion. - -The ice had broken and let some of them into the water. Pounder, -Cocoanut-scooper, Abroo, Oko, and others were floundering in the waves, -some swimming and others wading to their chins. The whole army was thrown -into a panic. The earth seemed to have given way beneath them, or what -they supposed to be new formed solid rock. - -[Illustration: THE AMMI BREAKING THROUGH THE ICE.] - -“It doesn’t look as if the water had given out,” growled Pounder, with a -savage glance at Oko. - -“I wish it had,” observed Oko, as he tried to keep his head above the -floating ice. - -A great scramble now ensued to regain the land, or a footing on solid -ice. Several got to fighting in the water, and there was a great -splashing and series of duckings. - -Those who got out stood shivering in the snow, and occasionally tried to -help out others; but most were afraid to go near the place of danger. - -When all had regained solid footing it became their chief care not to -break in again. They had evidently met a new danger greater than the -Lali. It was the water of the Swamp, which they had shortly before -bewailed as having gone forever. They moved more cautiously, therefore, -testing the strength of the ice as they proceeded. - -Before leaving the scene of the catastrophe, however, Oko, seeking to -turn their misfortune to profit, picked up some pieces of floating ice, -and proposed to take them along. - -“These rocks,” he said, “will make good missiles. By using them on the -Lali, we need not throw away our cocoanuts.” - -He accordingly filled a skin pouch with them, and carried some in his -arms, while others followed his example. They soon found them, however, -not only heavy and bulky, but having a new inconvenience. They imparted a -sense of discomfort, now know as cold, which, being unknown to them, was -dreaded as mysterious, like the effects of fire. - -After marching awhile they were rejoined by Fire-tamer, who had gone in -search of another “wood-eating beast.” He was successful in his search, -and his game was acceptable to the Ammi, who had learned to appreciate -the beast in cold weather. Even Gimbo was secretly glad, though he had to -protest, from force of habit, that they were introducing a demon among -them, and that they might as well be destroyed by the cold as eaten by -the hot monster. - -They now all collected brush, and soon there was a roaring fire on the -ice, at which they dried themselves and planned their future movements. -The pieces of ice which Oko and others had carried for weapons, and which -they had laid by the fire to warm, were found to have disappeared. They -had melted and run away. Oko thought somebody had stolen them, and he got -into a fight with Pounder over the matter, when finally a halt melted -piece was seen to be turning into water. They then charged the theft to -the wood-eating monster, which they thought was devouring their rocks. - -“He is worse than a hog,” said Oko, “to eat both wood and stone.” - -They observed at this time that neither apes nor wild beasts approached -them while they sat by the fire, but turned off at the sight of it with -fear; so that Fire-tamer remarked: - -“If we could always have this animal with us, no other danger would come -near.” - -It was sometime after this, however, before men took to building fires as -a protection against wild beasts. - -They observed also that some of the fruits and roots which -Cocoanut-scooper had tried to warm by placing them near the fire (for -they were frozen) became scorched, or boiled in their own juice, and -thereby much changed in taste. They found them better for the change; -so that they soon sought to do by design what they first did by -accident—prepare their food by fire—which was the beginning of the art of -cooking. - -They also discovered that their food, thus treated, was more tender and -wholesome, so that they could eat many things which were before too hard -or tough, and they thereby greatly increased their food, which was a -matter of importance at a time when it was being reduced by the cold. - -They also observed that when the fire was burning at night, it illumined -the space about them, making a kind of artificial day. Night fled from -it, as well as Cold and wild beasts, and stayed away as long as it -remained. By its means they could see without sun, or moon or Aurora -Borealis; and to overcome darkness in this way seemed the greatest -triumph yet made by man or beast. - -Taking a stick one night which had been lighted at a heap of coals, -Fire-tamer was enabled, by carrying it around, to find a wolf skin which -Koree had lost, and which could not be found in the dark. This opened the -eyes of the Ammi, and from that moment they began to use fire for light, -as well as heat; and that stick was the first candle of the human race. -That day could be carried about in small pieces seemed astounding. - -Through this discovery Fire-tamer gradually became the most important -man among the Ammi. Neither the strength of Pounder, nor the courage -of Koree, nor the wisdom of Abroo impressed the populace so much as -the mastery by this man of the wood-eating beast. He was appealed to -in all matters relating to fire. No other would venture to manage the -animal. Fire-tamer came at length to be thought sacred. The beast, it -was believed, dared not touch him. And Fire-tamer artfully used this -mystery to strengthen his influence among the Men. He purposely kept them -in ignorance and fear of the monster. He meant to keep control of this -interest, which he had the wisdom to perceive was soon to become the most -important one among the Ammi. He had, in short, a “corner” on fire, and -meant to keep it. - -The awe in which Fire-tamer was thus held, and the influence which he -had in consequence among the people, excited the jealousy of Koree and -other leaders, who saw their own star declining. Several quarrels ensued, -and there was a crisis, when a happy solution was reached by making -Fire-tamer a sort of high priest, whose business it was to have charge -of the wood-eating monster and keep it burning, in return for which -distinction he was to abandon his ambition to control the Ammi in other -matters. His office was the predecessor of that of the vestal virgins, -and his charge—fire—became worshipped as a deity, while he, as keeper of -it, became the chief ruler of men in religious matters. - -While they were discussing these interests, and the reciprocal bounds of -church and state were being first laid off, there arose a great commotion -among them. - -“Splash!” “Splash!” “Splash!” - -Such were the sounds that were now heard a second time; but the terror -was greater than before, and such a scene of confusion had never yet been -known to men. - -The fire had melted the ice, which gave way, and men, fire and all went -down into the water. One over another they tumbled, and, amid smoking -logs and sissing embers, struggled with one another and with the floating -ice. The fire was put out, and with it went the prestige of Fire-tamer, -at least for awhile. - -Some thought the wood-eating monster had taken a plunge and was running -away with them. They expected to be carried under the ice and into the -ground; and they were much relieved when they found that the monster had -gone alone and left them behind, and, as they gradually regained the -shore, or rather the firm ice, they presented such a mass of shivering -and dripping humanity as had not been seen till that day. - - - - -CHAPTER XXXVII. - - -[Illustration] - -The first impulse of the Ammi, on recovering their safety and their -senses, was to kill Fire-tamer who was thought responsible for the -disaster. He was supposed to know the habits of the beast, and was deemed -negligent in allowing them to be exposed to such a calamity. Pounder -especially favored his death, and proposed to inflict it himself, as he -had been twice submerged that day, and was specially out of humor. - -“I knew,” said Gimbo, “that it would come to this; but you never take the -advice of an old man. I don’t walk on four feet for nothing.” - -What had become of the beast, was the next question. - -“Shall we go after it?” asked one. - -Another said: “Let us rather run away from it, and kill Fire-tamer if he -brings another.” - -“It would be a good thing to have,” said Koree, “now that we are so cold -and wet.” - -“As soon as it should dry us,” replied Pounder, “it would plunge us again -in the water.” - -Fire-tamer was puzzled, and it was well that he had nothing to say; for -the Ammi were not in a condition to listen to him. He and his beast were -alike in disfavor, and so he waited for a cold day for his vindication. - -The Ammi proceeded on their way, but were terribly afflicted with the -cold, which kept steadily increasing. Their feet and hands suffered -most, for which they had as yet provided no covering. Walking through -the snow and on the ice they had frequently frozen feet. Osa, a young -and pretty girl, admired by many, was completely overcome, and fell back -in the march to die. Aloo, her lover, sought means of taking her along; -but, after carrying her awhile in his arms, and enlisting others to aid -him, he gave up exhausted, but stayed with her while the rest moved -on, resolved to die also. As nothing more has been heard of them it is -believed that they perished together. - -As the Ammi marched forward, they heard dreadful reports from the Apes -which they met, of the cold of the north. The whole country was covered -with snow; the rivers were frozen; the trees were dead; the animals had -left the country, or were perishing; great mountains of ice had formed -in the valleys; all fruit had disappeared, and the roots were under the -snow and could not be dug out of the hard ground. In the famine which -accompanied this change animals fell to eating one another, not only the -dead but the living, so that when the survivors reached the south they -were much thinned out. - -“It is foolish,” said Oko, on hearing these reports, “to go back to fight -the Lali. Let us rather return home, gather up what is left, and go south -also.” - -“Not till Sosee is recovered,” said Koree. “Neither Cold, nor Snow, nor -Famine shall make us desist from war. I mean to march through all these -to where she is, and to take her from the Lali even though they fight -twice as hard as the Storm.” - -“She has, no doubt, left long since with some lover among the Lali, and -is now in the south,” replied Oko. - -This was a more dreadful thought to Koree than that she should be -perishing in the north. He accordingly gave a savage look and growl at -Oko, and replied: - -“Whether she be in the snows or in the arms of a lover, I shall rescue -her.” - -He accordingly urged the army to quicken its pace, although to do so, -they had to leave many perishing ones to die. He feared more that they -would not find the Lali than they would, and so hurried to overtake those -whom he had shortly before hurried to escape from. - -Watch-the-girls opposed this excessive speed, on account of the many -females in her charge who could not keep up, and whom she was unwilling -to abandon in the snow. - -“If we go so fast,” she said, “we will have no forces left when we reach -the Lali, and will have to fight them with our leaders only.” - -“I can whip them all myself,” said Pounder, who was eager for the fight, -and thought little of those who perished, whether of the enemy or of his -own people. - -Koree, too, urged them to quicker speed, lest the battle, the Lali and -Sosee should all escape, and they themselves should be compelled to -return without glory or the girl. “If I must go south”, he said, “I want -the company of Sosee, and if I must die in the cold, I want to die with -her.” - -And so his tenderness for one became cruelty to many; and he led the -forces hastily to the seat of war, while the girls and the weak fell -back, unable to keep up. Watch-the-girls fell back with them, though -abundantly able to go on. She said she would die with her charge, or else -bring them up to the front later on. - -And so some remained behind suffering, while others went forward -suffering. Watch-the-girls was equally divided in her attentions between -caring for the dying and getting forward the living. - - - - -CHAPTER XXXVIII. - - -[Illustration] - -Meanwhile the Lali, to whom we will now return, had been passing through -a crisis no less serious than that of their enemy. After failing to -overtake the Ammi, whom they had prepared to overwhelm, as we have -related, by amassing against them the fugitives from the north, they -returned discouraged to their camp, there to encounter discontent among -their allies, and finally division. They were even threatened at one time -with extermination by the new-comers, which they averted by inducing the -latter to pass on. The allies accordingly began an exodus, and were soon -out of sight. - -But they devoured, before going, nearly all the means of the Lali, and -carried off what they could not eat, so that, with the coming of the -snow and cold, the Lali were left in destitution. This was relieved -by catching some of the animals that had come from the north, and by -gathering those that had perished in the snow. They also learned to eat, -as all do in time of war or famine, many new kinds of food, and gathered -leaves and sprigs, which till then had not been tasted. - -The flight of the Ammi before the allied Apes, which has already been -described, proved a serious loss to the Lali. These had hoped, on -conquering the Ammi, to take possession of Cocoanut Hill, and the stores -amassed there; and, had they succeeded, they would have had enough, both -for themselves and their allies, for some time, and could have lived in -comfort. - -When, accordingly, it was discovered that Sosee was the cause of the -flight of the Ammi, and so of the misfortunes of the Lali, they resolved -to put her to death. - -Several attempts were at once made at this, but singular obstacles arose -from the complications of the Apes with her, which secured her protection -by starting fights among themselves. - -One, Hang-from-the-vines, who had led the combined forces in search of -the escaping Ammi, first flew at her, and would have torn her to pieces, -but for the intervention of Ilo and Oboo, who had her in charge. Ilo -seized him by the throat, while Oboo snatched her away to a place of -safety. Hang-from-the-vines now turned in his rage to Ilo, and these -two fought together, and both received bites and scratches; but, as Ilo -fought for love and Hang-from-the-vines for revenge, Ilo was successful, -though the other was the greater warrior. - -Ilo marched proudly from his victory over Hang-from-the-vines, expecting -to receive the admiration of the people, and especially of Sosee, who had -been an indifferent lover. - -Great was his disappointment, therefore, when Oboo claimed the -girl. “For,” said Oboo, “I rescued her when about to be slain by -Hang-from-the-vines, capturing her from you both, as you had captured her -from the Ammi in the first place. If she was yours then, she is mine now, -and I will keep her.” - -This was too much for Ilo. Transported by rage he next sprang at -Oboo; when a fiercer fight ensued than when they both fought against -Hang-from-the-vines. Hair and blood flew; growls and bites came from both -mouths; and, as when the Wind and Snow had recently engaged in battle, -these mighty chiefs filled the air with confusion and wide-resounding -thunders. - -But as Ilo fought for his one love, and Oboo for one of many, Ilo was -successful, though he had not fought so often, or won so many victories -as Oboo. He accordingly took possession of Sosee, and, crowned with two -triumphs, hoped to enjoy her forever. - -But Oboo, being defeated, next resolved, in his double loss of honor and -lover, to effect her destruction. Whom he could not win he would kill. -This was more, however, from hatred of Ilo than anger at Sosee. He could -not endure that another should take a woman, especially from him; and -so he demanded her death as a punishment to Ilo, though ostensibly for -treachery to the whole. Joining, therefore, in a conspiracy with one whom -he had recently joined in a fight, he proposed to Hang-from-the-vines -that they kill her whom he had just rescued from death. - -But Hang-from-the-vines was now in a changed mood, being unwilling to -gratify his recent enemy even by his own success. - -“As you would not let me slay her,” he said, “you shall perpetuate your -victory as a defeat, and see her another’s. Preventing her death when she -was false to all, you shall not get me to kill her now because she is -false only to you.” - -Oboo, however, was resolved on her death, at least for the moment, and he -easily enlisted others in his design. Oola wanted her to die because she -had won from her the affections of Oboo (which many others, however, had -since obtained). Other women desired her death because she had been their -rival for several lovers, and still others merely because she was pretty -and popular; so that, between her charms and her offenses, she was in -double peril. All, however, urged as a pretext for her death, not their -real reason, but the excuse of her treachery; so that the public welfare -had to bear the odium of their private jealously. Only those having no -interest in her death—the great masses—wanted it on the ground which all -alleged. - -Her death, however, was ordered, and she was brought for execution before -the assembled Apes. Several were impatient to tear her to pieces. Oola, -fearing that others, by dispatching her, would deprive her of a coveted -revenge, made a pass at her, but was restrained by a male ape who had -begun to feel an attachment for her. A further delay was caused by a -priest who insisted on sprinkling the scene with Swamp water, which, like -the return of the ship from Delos, required time, during which, like -Socrates, she could still live. - -[Illustration: SOSEE’S STRATEGY.] - -Meanwhile she looked around for some means of escape. The chances for -this were small, as the last moment had now arrived; but her extremity -made action of some kind necessary. - -While, accordingly, the Apes awaited the signal for her death, and the -silence was solemnly intense, she suddenly sprang to her feet, and, with -great animation, pointed to the sky, accompanying her movement with a -shout. - -Every eye turned from her, and fixed its gaze on the sky. Those who had -been most intently looking at her, and expected to make the first rush -upon her, were the first to look away, and wildest in casting about their -heads to see what was the matter. There was an instant of general panic; -never did so many monkey heads move so rapidly, or in so many directions. -Nothing was to be seen, which made the search more intense. Many looked -more at the sky than they had ever done before, and some actually -believed they saw something, and were overcome by fright; for when people -see nothing they apprehend a great mystery. - -While all eyes were thus fixed on the sky, Sosee, summoning her strength -and fleetness, started to run. Swift as the wind, and as noiselessly, she -passed away. She went in the direction opposite to that in which they -were looking. - -For awhile her movements were not observed, but were supposed to be part -of the panic caused by the dash of all to see something; and it was some -seconds before any understood that their captive had broken away, and was -running for her life. - - - - -CHAPTER XXXIX. - - -[Illustration] - -The recapture of Sosee was an easy matter, though she had diverted from -her the attention of all before attempting her escape; and several, -standing near, sprang after her when they recovered from their surprise. - -These would have instantly seized her but for Ilo and Oboo. These two -lovers and rivals, notwithstanding their ill success with her, were at -heart unwilling that she should die, hoping each that he might, by some -means, still possess her. Instinctively, therefore, they interrupted the -pursuit. - -This was less, however, because they intended her escape, than because -they each resolved that the other should not have her. It was also -because they wanted no one else to have her; for her captor would be -entitled to possess her, and, in the Ape customs, recapture counted -as much as original capture, (since one allowing a female to escape -forfeited his title to her). - -The interruption of the pursuit, however, was only temporary. For the -whole body of apes, recovering from their surprise, now rushed after -her. Oboo and Ilo joined in the pursuit, but still took more care that -others should not capture her, than that they themselves should. For they -feared their own success as liable to defeat their purpose. The hope -of each was that she would enter the Swamp, where the other pursuers, -becoming scattered, could not overtake her, when he, (Oboo or Ilo), might -pursue her alone, and make her his own. These lovers, therefore, while -running faster than the rest, managed to stumble in the way of those -nearest her, and especially in the way of each other; so that Sosee was -soon gaining on them all. - -But her fleetness was of small avail, as also the rivalry of her -pursuers. The Lali closed upon her from three sides. Had she kept running -in a straight line toward the Swamp she might have escaped; but, just as -she had gained so much on them that she was nearly out of danger, she -changed her course, and, veering to one side, ran almost into the arms -of her pursuers. It was now a matter of only a minute when she would be -caught; and if taken she would be instantly killed, for the more savage -rabble, and not her lovers, were, by this turn, brought nearest her. Why -she made such a dangerous detour was understood by none but herself. - -Her pursuers were, therefore, confident, and their concern was now less -about whether she should be captured than about who should capture her; -for the victor would be entitled to possess her—or kill her; so that, -instead of being a race with her, it became a race with one another. - -A great bearded gorilla, after a spirited struggle to reach the front, -leaped ahead of the rest, like a racer on the home-stretch, and, with -his hair flying in the wind, and his jaws wide open, was on the point -of seizing her. Panting and furious he stopped for a last spring, which -would have both captured her and felled her to the ground; when a shout -arose from the Lali, which, being a shout of terror, made him stop and -look before leaping. - -There was abundant cause for this delay. For suddenly out of the edge of -the Swamp, which Sosee now reached, came in full view the forces of the -Ammi with Koree at their head. - -Sosee had dimly descried these a moment before, which was the cause of -her change of course; for she started to meet them by the most direct -route, knowing that if she could maintain her pace but a minute longer -she would be safe. - -The great ape who was close at her heels stopped at the sight of the -Ammi, which gave Sosee a moment more to live, and in that moment she -rushed into the arms of Koree and her friends. - - - - -CHAPTER XL. - - -[Illustration] - -Sosee was, therefore, safe for the present. - -But the pursuit did not end with the escape of the fugitive. The momentum -of the Apes was too great to let them stop, even when they wanted to. -They accordingly rushed on before they had time to think, and fell upon -the ranks of the Ammi, where their race was suddenly changed into a fight. - -Not knowing the numbers of the Ammi, and so not fearing them, the Lali -commenced, before they had yet time to comprehend their situation, to -make the best of it. Turning their eagerness into rage, they resolved -to kill both Sosee and all her race; so that scarcely had she reached a -place of safety when she found that she had carried danger into the ranks -of her friends. - -The impact of the Apes on the Men was resistless. It astonished them as -much by its shock as the Men had astonished the Apes by their appearance. - -The Ammi were thrown into a panic, and would have taken to flight had -they known where to run, (for the Apes were enclosing them on all -sides). All thoughts of Sosee were forgotten by both sides, and even by -herself. Koree had no time to congratulate himself on her rescue, or the -Lali to reproach themselves for her escape. It was a matter of life and -death to all, and again the fate of the human race hung in the balance. - -None fight so well as those who can do nothing else. The Apes, having got -into battle by chance, had to fight to get out; while the Ammi, drawn in -reluctantly, had to eagerly fight back. Both parties, therefore, fought -fiercely, who would gladly have quit altogether had they only known how. -But, having entered a battle which neither could abandon, both felt that -their only escape was through victory. Both therefore fought each other -fiercely as the only way to a mutual peace. - -Dreadful, therefore, was the clash of fists and nails and teeth. The air -was filled with cries and the ground with blood. Countless bodies lay in -the snow, and many who escaped freezing, now met slaughter. Death seemed -about to settle like a cloud on both forces, and to cover them all with -one common shroud. - -The Lali were both more numerous and more desperate. Having gained an -impetus communicated by their chase, they had every advantage. The Ammi, -though more skilled and better armed, were so taken by surprise that they -could use neither skill nor arms; so that, like the Apes, they fought -chiefly with their fists and jaws. - -“Let us retreat to the Swamp,” said Koree, who saw his forces yielding at -all points. - -“They won’t let us,” said Abroo, who knew that the Apes, being close, -would follow them, and prevent a second escape. - -The only problem thus was how to retreat. There seemed no way of giving -up the fight any more than of continuing it. Any sign of weakening would -encourage the enemy to rally and destroy them all. - -They continued, therefore, to fight against hope, but saw that even -battle would soon end them, since only a few now remained to either -escape or be killed. - -Oko proposed that they all run, and take each his chance of escape. “By -regaining the Swamp,” he said, “we may be saved by hiding in the bushes.” - -Abroo remarked that if they did so the women would be captured, and that -men without women were not worth saving. - -“Besides,” said Koree, “if we hide in the Swamp, they will track us in -the snow.” - -“There is nothing to do but fight,” said Pounder, who exhibited great -courage during all the encounter. “Let us make one desperate effort, and -kill as many Apes as we can before dying.” - -This seemed their only hope, which was born of despair; and they resolved -to make a strong effort though in weakness. - -Before exhausting that hope in their own extinguishment, Koree looked -sadly upon Sosee, and uttered these words as a last farewell: - -“Bitter it is to die now that I have rescued you, and when it would be -so sweet to live. But it is more glorious to die after success than if -you were still in the hands of the Lali. Since, therefore, we cannot live -together, let us die together.” - -Sosee, however, heeded not his despairing words, but continued fighting. -For scarcely had she gained the ranks of the Ammi when she turned on her -pursuers, and was one of the fiercest combatants against them. - -“Rally to the fight,” she said, “and don’t give up to die while you have -power to kill.” - -Her resolution was contagious, so that new spirit was infused into -the Ammi; and, had there been more for the contagion to spread among, -her words would have proved their salvation; but it was an enthusiasm -imparted to the helpless. - -While, therefore, they looked to see the enemy rush upon them, bearing -with them Death, they were in a mind to receive this double enemy with -fortitude. - -Suddenly a commotion was observed among the Lali. Apparent consternation -seized them, and they seemed about to retire from the field at the moment -of their complete victory. - -The cause of this consternation was that reënforcements had suddenly come -to the Ammi, and from a quarter least expected. It was not Night that -had opportunely settled down upon them, as it had before upon the Lali -when it saved them from destruction. Nor was it a blinding Snow that beat -in their faces; as if the skies had come down to attack them by storm. -Instead of the Heavens it was the Earth that furnished their last relief. - -Watch-the-girls, who had fallen back, as we have related, and could not -keep up in the march through the Swamp, because of the cold and fatigue -of her troops, now appeared in sight with her female warriors. Left to -die these heroines had fought their fate and conquered the elements, and -they now came up to succor those who had forsaken them, thus offering -salvation in return for abandonment. They were first seen by the Lali, -whose faces, in fighting, were turned toward them; and this sight was the -cause of their confusion. - -Out from the Swamp and into the field these women rushed. Fatigue had -left them for a while, and the cold had loosed its grasp. Courage took -the place of weakness, and they rushed into battle without thought of -their condition. Those who were thought not strong enough to live were -now found able to fight. - -As when Bluecher appeared to the Allies at Waterloo, and turned the -fortunes of war, so Watch-the-girls came at the critical moment, and, -with new troops, entered the fight and brought back hope. - -Weak as they were after their long march and privation, these women -fought with bravery, and persisted to the end. The Lali, who had already -seized the victory, now released their grasp, and, falling in great -numbers, laid hold on Despair instead. Thrown first into confusion, and -then into rout, they found it impossible to longer continue the contest, -and so fled from the field. - -Thus the victory was won by the Ammi, and the human race was saved. - - - - -CHAPTER XLI. - - -[Illustration] - -The Lali being defeated, the next question with the Ammi was what to -do with them. Pounder proposed that they follow them up and kill them -all. Oko seconded this, so far as to follow them up, but suggested that -instead of killing them, they simply take what they have, and let them -go; for his idea of war was robbery. - -“Whether they be dead or not,” he said, “does not matter provided we have -their booty.” - -Koree having obtained Sosee, the object for which he went to the war, was -willing to abandon the conflict, and return home without anything else. - -“There is nothing to fight for now,” he said; “and nothing that we can -get here will be as good as what we can enjoy at home.” - -Sosee seconded this proposal, having learned to love the Lali -notwithstanding her captivity among them; and she did not wish to add to -their distress. - -“And let us go quickly,” she said, “or Oboo and Ilo will find means of -attacking us again.” - -This suggestion about his rivals confirmed Koree in his conviction that -it was best to return home. - -After further consultation it was finally agreed to return at once to -Cocoanut Hill. - -Here, accordingly, the Ammi parted forever from the Lali, and the -separation proved the greatest turning point in the world’s affairs. The -Lali became lost to history, like the Ten Tribes, and have been since -sought as the “Missing Link.” Wandering for generations in the Cold and -Famine they finally became extinct, the last of a numerous race. Passing -out of the world, as well as out of history, they will be sought forever -in vain. Only under glacial beds, amid fossil bones, may their relics now -be traced. - -As the Ammi were making preparations for their homeward march, Oko -suggested that, before departing, they gather up all they had; and he -even went among the dead to see if he could find anything valuable on the -field. - -With Cocoanut-scooper and Abroo he then took charge of the baggage, -including their provisions. - -“For,” said Cocoanut-scooper, “the Swamp is covered with snow, so that we -may not be able to forage along the way as we did when we came.” - -The preparations for the return march were soon completed, being few and -simple, so that in a little while the Ammi were on their way back to the -Cocoanut Hill region. - -The snow was deep, and the way difficult, so that, like the march of -Napoleon from Moscow, this return of the Ammi was a journey of suffering -amid ice and snow and privation. - -Gladly as the Greeks, who, when led back from Persia by Xenophon, beheld -with tears the Euxine Sea, and cried out with joy, “The Sea!” “The Sea!” -so the warriors of this earlier Anabasis, when they came to the Lake -where they had left their fleet, expressed great joy at the sight of the -shores beyond, which recalled their homes. - -They would have shed tears, but having only recently learned to laugh, -they had not yet learned to weep. - -The rafts which they had left moored to the shore were fast in the ice, -except one which had fallen to pieces and was now seen strewn about as -stray logs. - -But they had no need of rafts; for the water was frozen and they walked -across easily on the ice. - -After some small adventures they reached at last their homes with joy, -and the great expedition to the Lali, and their battles with them, were -at an end. - -But they found, on reaching home, that their country was much changed. -All was covered with snow where they had left a green earth and tropical -foliage. The swarms of animals which had come from the north, like the -Goths, had, like them, swept away every vestige of improvement, and -devoured the fruits of the neighborhood. The trees which they had left -laden with mangos, figs and nuts, were now bare, their branches breaking -with snow instead of fruit. The Swamp itself seemed deserted, the life -which had filled it being dead or departed. - -Their families too, had been depleted. Of those left behind some had -been slain by the cold or famine, while others had wandered away. It was -a desolate home, therefore, to which the returning warriors came, like -Greece when it was regained by the soldiers after the Trojan War. - -[Illustration: RETURN OF THE AMMI TO COCOANUT HILL.] - -Pounder discovered that some one had taken possession of his wife in his -absence, or of the woman who most nearly corresponded to such personage, -and he immediately slew him, and took her back. The two illegitimate -lovers had in his absence driven out many of the other Ammi who had -remained at home, and taken possession of what was left in their huts. -All this Pounder now took charge of, along with the woman. - -One of their number had been lost, and did not return for many years. -He wandered about the Swamp, visiting its many shores, and meeting, -like Ulysses, many strange kinds of apes and other beasts. Long did he -search for his home, and many times he came near the edge of the Swamp, -in sight of Cocoanut Hill; but a perverse mistake each time drove him -farther away. He wandered among thickets and vines, crossed streams and -hid in marshes. He lived on roots dug from under the snow, and on fish -caught under the ice. He suffered many pains and aches and bruises, still -seeking his home. Twice he was chased by the mastodon, and four times he -fought with catamounts. The stars seemed to wander from their places so -that he could not even recognize the heavens; and when he emerged at last -from the Swamp it was to look upon an unknown country. Like the Wandering -Jew he found no rest for his feet, but went on forever, never finding -what he sought. Climbing banks and trees, and walking over ice and rocks, -he yet saw nothing familiar, but always something new; and when at last -he came within sight of his dwelling it was found to be under a mountain -of ice; and as he started to go south, he turned, with his usual fate, -to the north, and the traditions of the Ammi say that he is wandering to -this day. - - - - -CHAPTER XLII. - - -[Illustration] - -As the cold continued and strengthened, and about all the animals had -left the Cocoanut Hill region, the Ammi began to consider whether they -also should not migrate. They had resisted the change of climate thus far -by building mounds, adding to their clothing, and habitually using fire. -(For they had given up their superstition about this element, to whom it -long since ceased to be a God, and was now not even an animal.) - -By these and similar devices they could live in the cold longer than -other animals, and they made many improvements in their condition, which -would have defied the weather had it been of an ordinary kind. But a -glacial period had set in, which was to last, not for a winter, but for -an age. The snow was falling that was to pile up in mountains, and to -march for centuries over the land as glaciers, and no life could resist -it; and hence, when they were satisfied that there was to be no thaw, or -early return of warmth, they asked themselves whether they should not -abandon their homes and their country. - -“The cold has come to stay,” said Cocoanut-scooper, “and we cannot always -dig for a living. The hogs and tapirs which excel us in rooting, have -left, and we should not try to live where a hog can’t.” - -“Our fingers and toes are frozen,” said Gimbo, “and if we don’t soon get -away we will have nothing to walk away with.” - -“How do we know,” asked Koree, “that we will find it better elsewhere?” - -“I notice,” replied Abroo, “that none of the birds or beasts that go are -ever seen to come back, and they all go one way.” - -“Perhaps they are frozen, and can’t return through the snow,” remarked -Koree. - -“The birds, which do not have to walk, do not come back any more than the -beasts,” retorted Abroo. - -“I think,” said Gimbo, “that any place where one can’t walk on four feet -is no place to live,” and he raised himself up on his hind feet to warm -his hands by blowing them—a method that they had only recently learned. - -At this moment a great roar was heard in the mountains, and a shaking -of the earth like that which followed the upheaval of the Alps. A rush -of snow descended from a high peak, crashing into the valley below, and -burying everything beneath it. It was the first avalanche seen by man, -and it laid the foundation of a mighty glacier which was to be followed -by others in its march across the country. - -The Ammi were frightened at this new wonder, and thought that part of -the sky had fallen, and that the gods would come next. Gimbo died from -the fright, not so much because of what he saw and heard, as from the -expected descent of the gods. Thus passed away the last four-footed man. - -After regaining their composure they quickly decided to flee from the -Cold, the Famine and the falling Heavens. - -It was, accordingly, determined to go South; and they immediately began -preparations for the exodus. - -As soon as they were ready, they therefore left their ancient Paradise of -Cocoanut Hill—the first Eden of the Human Race—driven by the cold, bleak -God of Snow; but they sought another Eden. - -As they started South, Koree and Sosee led the way, not caring whither -they went, so they went together. - -They directed their steps toward Egypt and Western Asia, whence their -ancestors had come. - -They soon got beyond the snow, and out of their sufferings; for -the glacial region did not extend far south of Cocoanut Hill. They -accordingly had abundant fruits and mild climate for their journey, and -they proceeded with merriment, as well as regret, stopping often and -delaying long where the country through which they passed pleased them. - -They were soon beyond the Alps, which they did not, like Napoleon and -Hannibal, have to scale; but many of the present peaks and ridges were -not yet thrown up in the air, so that they easily passed through the -defiles on level ground. - -Nor were they stopped by the Mediterranean; for that sea did not then -exist in its present extent. The whole surface of Europe, indeed, -differed from its present contour. Spain was still connected with Africa -at Gibraltar, and Italy at Sicily; while the British Isles were still -joined to the continent. It was subsequent convulsions that first tore -the continents apart, and sent deluges over Europe. For the upheaval of -the Alps, already mentioned, was to be followed by others still greater, -which would upset the basins of the old world, and spill their contents -over nearly all Europe, destroying its life. - -It was not difficult, therefore, for these primitive pilgrims to make -their way to the tropics; and, like the Phocaeans, they went resolved -never to return; and not for many centuries was Man again seen in Europe -or the North. - -The region that was covered with snow remained a waste for ages; and it -was, according to a prophecy of the Ammi, to continue unpeopled, until -one of the descendents of Koree and Sosee should return, and, under the -name of Adam, (Ammi or Man) recapture Cocoanut Hill, and enter again the -North as a Paradise Regained. - -But some said that the man who should thus re-people the North would be -the lost one mentioned in the preceding chapter, who would wander till -the appointed time in Alligator Swamp; and they maintained also that he -would then be found to be no other than the faithful Aloo, who had fallen -back with Osa to die; that on account of their faithfulness these two -lovers would not be destroyed by cold, or hunger, or fatigue, or time; -but that, overcoming all hardships, they would wander on until the Sun -should come again; when they would find rest at last amid the retreating -snows, and there start a new race, after all others had passed out of -history. - - - - -INGERSOLL BEACON - - -A spicy little monthly at 50 cents a year. - -Edited by—WM. H. MAPLE - -Devoted to Science, Free Thought and the Gospel of Reason and Good Cheer, -in contrast with the “foolish forms and cringing faiths” of theology. - - It comes to hail the morning - Of re-enfranchised man, - To sound aloud the warning - Of priest-craft’s dangerous plan. - -SUBSCRIBE NOW! - -Every Number is Worth the Price for a Year - - INGERSOLL BEACON CO. - CHICAGO - - - - -ONE OF THE STRONG BOOKS OF THE AGE. - -NO “BEGINNING” - -OR THE FUNDAMENTAL FALLACY. - -BY WILLIAM H. MAPLE. - - -“The links of its logic are riveted very firmly together, and “No -Beginning” is simply unanswerable.” - -This work _demonstrates_ the non-existence of a “first cause” for the -material universe, and proves the oneness of God with Nature. - -It denies supernaturalism in all its forms, and claims that reason alone -leads to truth. Nature, it holds, is ever changing in form, but is -eternal in substance, and in its entirety constitutes the only absolute. - -It is believed to be the only book in existence claiming to prove, with -the certainty of a mathematical demonstration and along common-sense -lines of thought, the negative of the above mentioned old theological -premise. In this respect it is at once =a curiosity of literature= and a -powerful auxiliary in the cause of rationalism _versus_ superstition. - -_Its aim is to aid in popularizing a reasonable conception of the -universe in place of the old notion of its supernatural origin and -control, to the end of lessening superstition and intolerance, and that -both politics and ethics may be made to rest on scientific truth instead -of pretended supernatural revelations._ - -It shows how the infallibility of the Pope and other cardinal church -doctrines have grown out of the old belief in the “creation” of the -universe out of nothing, and incidentally it is made to appear that -religious controversy must eventually narrow down to an issue between -Rationalism and Catholicism. - -The closing chapter deals with Herbert Spencer’s argument for an -“Unknowable Absolute,” and, to quote the Chicago _Chronicle_, “amounts to -a very drastic, indeed, destructive criticism.” - -=Third Edition: 183 pages, two striking illustrations. In neat cloth -binding, 75 cents; in paper binding, 35 cents, postpaid.= - -=ADDRESS: INGERSOLL BEACON CO., CHICAGO.= - -☞ For testimonials, see next two pages. - - -What They Say of “No Beginning.” - -“Is the strongest book on earth.”—_A correspondent in the Truth Seeker._ - -“It is a volume that should be in every Freethought -library.”—_Freethought Magazine, Chicago._ - -“As a champion of reason, one of the very strongest essays we have ever -read.”—_Boston Ideas._ - -“One of the most comprehensive and conclusive works on the subject we -remember seeing.”—_Truth Seeker, New York._ - -“I doubt very much whether more thoughts were ever compressed into 183 -small pages of print.”—_T. M. Stuart, Attorney._ - -“It is the most sensible treatise on the question of a first creation -ever published and should be taught in the public schools. The book is a -credit to the intelligence of the age.”—_Santa Ana, (Cal.) Bulletin._ - -“The argument is unanswerable.... The book will at once appeal to the -reason of every reader, and leave him more amazed than ever at the -prevalence of the theory of Creation.”—_The Arena, Boston._ - -“He employs the resources of both logic and scientific discovery in a -convincing and common-sense way, and ought not to offend the feelings of -the most orthodox who is willing to argue honestly.”—_Review of Reviews, -New York and London._ - -... “In my judgment it surpasses anything that has ever been written on -the subject.... Every thinking man and woman on earth should be sure to -read the book, as they will learn something that will live in their minds -as long as memory lasts.”—_T. J. Edwards, M. D., Oblong, Ill._ - -“I consider it one of the greatest masterpieces along its line ever -written. With one blow the author knocks out the First Cause theory -for the material universe, and, with the clearest and most logical -reasoning, he causes the veil of orthodox superstition to rend from top -to bottom.”—_P. M. Harmon, late Pastor of the People’s Church, at Spring -Valley, Minn._ - -“It deserves a place among the strong books of the age ... evolves a -world which bristles with life and thought.... To me as entertaining as a -story.”—_Moses Folsom, St. Paul, Minn._ - -“The links of its logic are riveted very firmly together, and ‘No -Beginning’ is simply unanswerable.... The book is a rare gem of precious -thought and will do great good in the world.”—_Dr. W. H. Gibbon, -Chariton, Iowa._ - -“While the author’s smooth, argumentative style, logical methods and -cogent reasonings, exhibit the keen conception and consummate skill -of a well-trained legal mind, the kindly spirit of toleration of -views, adverse to the thought presented, reveals the generous-hearted, -noble-souled manhood with which the author is inspired.”—_Chariton (Iowa) -Herald._ - -STRIKINGLY BOLD AND ORIGINAL. - -“The book is a strikingly bold and original argument, ... is compact, -systematically built up and controversially formidable.... It [the -last chapter] amounts to a very drastic, indeed, destructive criticism -of Herbert Spencer’s argument for an ‘Unknowable Absolute.’”—_Chicago -Chronicle._ - -A WELCOME BURST OF SUNSHINE. - -“A second and more careful reading of ‘No Beginning’ confirms the -favorable opinion formed from the first reading. The clearness, -thoroughness, lucidity of style, reasonableness and profound wisdom -of this invaluable volume hold the attention, convince the judgment -and command the most unqualified admiration. I know of no man, however -extensive his research or well disciplined his reason, who would not -receive benefit by a careful examination of this work, while to the -average thinker it must prove like a welcome burst of sunshine through a -rift in obscuring clouds. A friend of mine who had just finished reading -the book, emphatically remarked to me: ‘I would rather be the author of -that book than to be president of the United States,’ and to my mind, -the sentiment did credit to his judgment and character.”—_George W. -Morehouse, author of “The Wilderness of Worlds.”_ - - - - - -End of the Project Gutenberg EBook of From Monkey to Man, or, Society in the -Tertiary Age, by Austin Bierbower - -*** END OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK FROM MONKEY TO MAN, OR *** - -***** This file should be named 63379-0.txt or 63379-0.zip ***** -This and all associated files of various formats will be found in: - http://www.gutenberg.org/6/3/3/7/63379/ - -Produced by Tim Lindell and the Online Distributed -Proofreading Team at https://www.pgdp.net (This file was -produced from images generously made available by The -Internet Archive/American Libraries.) - - -Updated editions will replace the previous one--the old editions -will be renamed. - -Creating the works from public domain print editions means that no -one owns a United States copyright in these works, so the Foundation -(and you!) can copy and distribute it in the United States without -permission and without paying copyright royalties. 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