The Providence news. (Providence [R.I.]) 1891-1906, 1897-05-04
,,,,ugh- Joni and uNo'
:SlxssH IN M ,FSSyR Story o: the Stone Q9e
WIN 49,. HGWElLS'
ovrr0a .f THE Tirs r1hCnnt'
nvrrOn If THE Tins r1hCnlnt'

water, where Wau had como to the sur
face struggling weakly. They glib
bered at him without any sane attempt
10 help, and presently he went under
sgain. Two others threatened Ugh
lomi from the bank.
He answered back, shouts, vague in
suits, gestures. Then Uya, who had
been standing, hesitating, roared with
rage, and whirling his fists, came plung-
ing through the water. His followers
,ame splashing after him.
Ugh-lorni glanced over his shoulder
and found Eudena already vanished into
the thicket. He would perhaps have
waited for Uya, but Uya preferred TO
spar in the water below him until the
others were beside him. Human tactics
IN those days, in all serious fighting,
were the Tactics of the pack. Prey that
turned at bay, they gathered around and
rushed. Ugh-lomi felt the rush coming,
and hurting the antler at Uya, turned
about and fed.
When ne halted 10 look back from the
shadow of the thicket, he found only
three of his pursuers had followed him
across the river, and they were going
back again. Uya, with a bleeding
mouth, was on the further side of the
stream again, but lower down. and he
held his hand TO his side. The others
were in the river dragging something
10 shore For n time at least the chase
was intermitted.
Ugh-lomi stood watching for a space,
and snarled at the sight OF Uya. Then
he turned and plunged into the thicket.
In minute, Eudena came hasten
ing to join him, and they went on
hand in hand. He dimly perceived the
pain she suffered from the cut and
bruised knee, and chose the easier ways.
But they went on all that day, mile
after mile, through wood and thicket,
until at last they came to the chalk land,
open grass with rare woods of beach.
and the birch growing near water, and
they saw the Wealden mountains near
er, and groups of horses grazing to-
gether. They saw no men, for in those
days men were still only just come
into this part of the world, and were
moving but slowly along the river
tho river again, but now il ran in a
gorge, between high cliffs of white
chalk that sometimes overhungit. And
high UP the cliff was little shelf by
tree, whereon they clambered to pass
the night.
They had had scarcely any food; il
was not the time of year for berries,
and they had no time to gro aside TO
snare or waylny. They tramped in n
hungry. weary silence, gnawing at
t'vigs and leaves. But over the surface
of the cliffs were a multitude of snails,
and in bush were the treshly-laid eggs
of little bird, and then Ugh-lomi threw
at and killed squirrel in n beech tree.
so that at last they fed well Ugh-lomi
watched during the night, his chin on
his knees; and he heard young foxes
crying hard by. and the noise of nam
moths down the gorge. and the hyenas
yelling and laughing far away. 1t was
chilly. but they dared not light n fire.
Whenever he dozed, his spirit went
abroad, and straightway met with the
spirit of Uya, and they fought. Eudena,
too, dreamt evil things of Uya, so that
they both awoke with the fear of him
in their hearts, and by the light of tho
dawn they saw woolly rhinoceroe go
laundering down the valley.
During the day Ugh-lomi found great
flints sticking ont of the cliff face,
greater than any he had seen, and he
dragged some 10 the ledge and began
chipping. so as to be armed against
Uya when he came again. And at one
he laughed heartily, and Eudena
laughed, and they threw il about in
derison. IL had hole in II. They
stuck their fingers through il, it was
very funny indeed. Then they peeped
at one another throughit. Afterwards,
Ugh-lomi got himself n stick, and
thrusting by chance at this foolish flint,
the stick went in and stuck there. He
had rammed II in too tightly TO with
draw il. That was still stranger
scarcely funny, terrible almost, and for
a time Ugh-lomi did not greatly care 10
touch the thing. IL was as IL the flint
had bit and held with its teeth. But
then he got familiar with the odd COM
bination. He swung IL about, and per-
ceived dmly that the stick with the
heavy stone on the end struck better
blow than anything he knew. He won't
10 and fro swinging IL, and striking with
IL: but later he tired of il and threw il
aside. In the afternoon he went up over
the brow of the white cliff, and lay
nSN