The Elbert County tribune., 1913-09-19

I was surprised when | answered him in the
= tongue.
1--WE must kill you. he said. but there is
no hurry. We shall wait.
"As though acting the suggestion. the
thirty black iends squatted in semicircie
about me and fell slowly and deliberately to
sharpening their knives
"There is hurry. the chief said again
We must do before the coming OF day,
that is ALL.
..Then in flash It came back to that
had heard from men of our own tribe that the
Aneza were sun worshippers and that it was the
greatest OF all religious crimes among them to
commit murder when the sun-their god-was In
the ascendancy. Like shot t<came to me that
II I could delay the execution until sunrise my
life would be saved. But how?
"The hope seemed futile / wondered what
time 1t was knew 1t was after midnight AS
l lay on my blankets watching those hideous
black faces that doubly black and grotesque
in the weird flame of the torches. began to work
my hand slowly toward my pocket where kept
my watch. got it out and dropped my eyes to
the face In the gloom ! could make out the
hands pointing to 2 o'clock. 1t nearly three
hours to sun-up. There was not the ghost OF
chance of holding them OFF until then
But Just the same, | kept trying to figure 1t
out in my mnd--to devise some plan to that end.
And meanwhile began to witness the services
that were to precede my death Squatting there
with their black legs crossed that grim semi
circle of fends began to rock slowly back and
forth from the hips. humming strange. un-
canny minor monotone. Out in front the big
chief led them 1t the Aneza sacrifice pre-
lude, SO to speak. And was to be the sacrifice.
Il tell you. it got into my nerves. don't think
/ am natural coward. but half rythmically.
keeping time it were, to the beating chant of
those voices and the sway and swing of the black
bodies. | heard my teeth begin to click
Il glanced my shoulder to the other flap
of the tent. AS did so the Arab chief seemed to
divine my thought for at a motion of his hand.
the sem-circle moved forward couple of feet
Ncloser and squatting again, went on with the
gruesome ceremonies. There chance of
escape by flight that certain.
But never for moment did l stop thinking
struggling to drag idea out of the confusion in
my brain. And all the time the Aneza went
whettng the knives and grooming and swaying.
Half an hour. then an hour went by. count
ed the minutes, for ! knew they measured the
time left yet to live And then. suddenly.
turned cold. My heart leaped and something fill
ed my throat 1t was the idea had been comb
ing my brain for. and 1t chance. SO
faint. perhaps but still chance.
Across the tent, not ten feet distant, my
trunk with my stereopticon lantern and my
slides-slides had made OF New York city, of
the Metropolitan tower and Broadway and all
the other sights of home. Could | but.
must Speaking in Arab. / addressed the chief
Before the time came to make the sacrifice l had
something to show them-something the like of
which they had never seen. Would they like to
IL?
"Breathless awaited the answer There was
silence; then 1t came The chief would like to
l pointed to the trunk. They brought it to
me. l unpacked the lantern and set 1t up. the
long knives were following me not two inches
away the while. The side OF the tent the
screen lighted the lantern and dropped in the
first slide Across the circle of light 6oated in
color the great Metropolitan tower. AS 1t did SO
the muttering murmur OF the death prelude way-
cred and died out
There silence: then sharp words of
mystery, wonder, of-fear. Working swiftly
| killed the exterior of the tower and shot into
its place view of its interior, then another and
another. followed with pictures from its top
pictures OF the river, OF Broadway below, OF
motor tearing along with no visible means
of locomotion, OF the loom of giant skyscrapers
in the distance, of huge bridges across the East
river. of steamboats, and liners running out of the
harbor. Of Miss Liberty Bedloe's Island and Of
the marvellous tnngle Of Coney Island.
THE death prelude was forgotten The fear
gave place to an evergrowing wonder. The
semicircle leaned forward. a of peering,
crowding black heads and black shoulders