All the balance of that night the ape-man swung rapidly through the
upper and middle terraces of the forest. When the going was good there he
preferred the upper branches of the giant trees, for then his way was better
lighted by the moon; but so accustomed were all his senses to the grim
world of his birth that it was possible for him, even in the dense, black
shadows near the ground, to move with ease and rapidity. You or I walking
beneath the arcs of Main Street, or Broadway, or State Street, could not
have moved more surely or with a tenth the speed of the agile ape-man
through the gloomy mazes that would have baffled us entirely.
At dawn he stopped to feed, and then he slept for several hours, taking
up the pursuit again toward noon.
Twice he came upon natives, and, though he had considerable
difficulty in approaching them, he succeeded in each instance in quieting
both their fears and bellicose intentions toward him, and learned from
them that he was upon the trail of the Russian.
Two days later, still following up the Ugambi, he came upon a large
village. The chief, a wicked-looking fellow with the sharp-filed teeth that
often denote the cannibal, received him with apparent friendliness.
The ape-man was now thoroughly fatigued, and had determined to rest
for eight or ten hours that he might be fresh and strong when he caught up
with Rokoff, as he was sure he must do within a very short time.
The chief told him that the bearded white man had left his village only
the morning before, and that doubtless he would be able to overtake him in
a short time. The other party the chief had not seen or heard of, so he said.
Tarzan did not like the appearance or manner of the fellow, who
seemed, though friendly enough, to harbour a certain contempt for this
half-naked white man who came with no followers and offered no presents;
but he needed the rest and food that the village would afford him with less
effort than the jungle, and so, as he knew no fear of man, beast, or devil,
he curled himself up in the shadow of a hut and was soon asleep.
Scarcely had he left the chief than the latter called two of his warriors,
to whom he whispered a few instructions. A moment later the sleek, black
bodies were racing along the river path, up-stream, toward the east. |
