The Calhoun chronicle. [volume] (Grantsville, W. Va.) 1883-1984, 1914-03-30

Continued from last " eek }
was that there were comparatively
few individual bugs. But these were
repeated many times, occasionally
alone, but more often I'm company with
others
Slowly he turned the pages, scan
ming the pictures and the text for
repetition OF the combination boy.
Presently he found it beneath picture
OF another little ape and n strange
animal which went upon four legs like
the jackal and somewhat resembled
him. Beneath this picture the bugs
appeared as
A BOY AND A DOG.
There they were, the three little
bugs which always accompanied the
little ape
And so he progressed very, very
slowly, for it was hard and labor
ious task which he had set himself
without knowing it, a task which
might seem TO you or to me impossible
learning to read without having the
slightest knowledge of letters or writ
ten language or the faintest idea that
such things existed.
He did not accomplish 1t in n day or
i'm week or in month or in u year,
but slowly, very slowly, he learned.
BY the time he was fifteen he knew
the various combinations of letters
which stood for every pictured figure
in the little primer and In one or two
of the picture books.
OF the meaning and use OF the arti-
cles and conjunctions, verbs, adverbS
and prOnouns he had but the faintest
and haZiest conception.
One day when he was about twelve
he found number OF leadpencils I'm a
hitherto undiscovered drawer beneath
the table, and in scratching upon the
table with one of them he was delight
ed TO discover the black line IL left be-
hind IT,
He worked so assiduously with this
new toy that the table top was soon a
mass of scrawly loops and irregular
lines and his pencil point worn down
to the wood Then he took another
pencil. but this time he had definite
object i'm view
He would attempt to reproduce some
of the little bugs that scramble over
the pages of his book.
1t was difficult task. for he held the
pencil as one would grasp the hilt Of a
dagger, which does not add greatly to
ease in writing nor to the lcgibiity or
the results
But he persevered for months. at
such times as he was able to come to
the cabin, until at last by repeated ex-
perimenting lie found position i'm
which to hold the pencil that best per-
mitted him to guide and control it., so
that at last be could roughly reproduce
any Of the litte bugs
Thus he made beginning at writing.
Copying the bugs taught him an
other thing. their number; and, though
be could not count ms we understand
il. yet he had an idea of quantity the
base of his calculations being the num-
Der Of fingers upon one Of his hands.
His search through the various books
convinced him that he had discovered
all the different kinds OF bugs most
often repeated i'm combination. and he
arranged them in proper order with
great case because of the frequency
with which he had perused the fasci-
mating alphabet picture book and the
huge illustrated dictionary.
BY the time he was seventeen he had
learned to read the simple child's
primer and had fully realized the true
and wonderful purpose OF the bugs.
No longer did he feel shame for his
hairless body or his human features,
for now his reason told him that he
was Of different race from his wild
and hairy companions He was a
MAN. they were APES" and
the little apes which scurried through
the forest top were MONK E-Y-S."
IIe knew, too that old Snbor was n
TIC Err" and Histah n "S-N-A-K- T."
aud Tantor an "E-I~E-P-H-A.N.T."
From then on his progress was rapid
With the help OF the great dictionary
and the active intelligence Of n healthy
mind endowed by Inheritance with
more than ordinary reasoning powers
he shrewdly guessed at much which
he could not really understand. and
more often than not his guesses were
close 10 the mark OF truth
There were many breaks I'm his edu.
cation, caused by the migratory habits
Of his tribe. but even when removed
from recourse to his books his active
brain continued to search out the mys
teries Of his fascinating nvocation
Nor did he neglect the stcrner duties
Of life while following the bent Of bis
inclination toward the sowing OF the
mystery or his library.
lie practiccd With his rope and play
ed With bis sharp knife, which he had
learned to Keep keen by wbctung upon
CAT stones
CHAPTER ~
Tarzsn Mightiest Of the Apes.
- liz lrLIn III n,.n. mn ..rn-...,.