The Brookings register. [volume] (Brookings, Brookings County, S.D.) 1903-1971, 1914-10-29
CHAPTER XVIII.
The Ivory Raiders.

jungle In the direction of the
village. For a few minutes
the sharp cracking Of guns ahead
warned them to haste. but finally the
reports dwindled to an occasional shot,
presently ceasing altogether. MOI was
this less ominouS than the rattle of
musketry. for ii suggested but a single
solution to the little band Of ~rescuers-
that the lily garrisoned village had al
ready succumbed to the onslaught of
a superior force.
The returning hunters had covered a
little more han three miles of the five
that had separated them from the vii
lage when they met the first of the
fugitives who had escaped the bullets
and the clutches of the foe. There
were a dozen women youths and girls
in the party. and SO excited were they
that they could scarce make them
selves understood as they tried to re-
late to Waziri the calamity that had
befallen his people.
'They are as many as the leave of
the forest" cried one of the women, in
attempting to explain the enemy's
force. There are many Arabs and
countless Manyuema. and they all have
guns. They crept close to the village
before we knew that they were about.
and then, with many shouts, they
rushed in Upon us. shooting down men
and women and children Those of Us
who could fed in all directions into the
jungle. but more were killed. | do not
know whether they took any prisoners
or not-they seemed only bent upon
killing us all"
The march toward the village was
now resumed more slowly and with
greater stealth. for WaZiri knew that ii
was too late to rescue; their only mis-
sion could be one of revenge. Inside
the next mile q hundred more fugitives
were met. There were many men
among these, and so the fighting
strength of the party was augmented.
Now a dozen warriors were sent
creeping ahead to reconnoiter. Waziri
remained with the main body. which
advanced In a thin line that spread in
a great crescent through the forest.
BY the chiefs side walked TarZan.
Presently one of the scout returned
He had come within sight of the vii
lage.
They are all within the palisade."
he whispered.
Good" said Waziri. I'VE shall
rush in upon them and STAY .hem all"
wait" cautioned Tarzan. If there
are even fifty guns within the palisade
we shall be repulsed and slaughtered.
Let me go alone through the trees, so
that | may look down upon them from
above and see just how many there
be and what chance we might nave
Were we to charge. VIII you wait.
Waziri?"
Yes" said the old chief. Cor
So Tarzan sprang into the trees and
disappeared in the direction of the vii
lage. He moved more cautiously than
was his wont. for he knew hat men
with guns could reach him quite as
easily in the treetops as ON the ground.
In five minutes he had wormed his
way to the great tree that o%verhung
the palisade at one end of the village.
dui lie poiht vi Atu iScnNN
down upon the savage horde beneath.
He counted fifty Arabs and estimated
that there were five times as many
cannibal Manyuema.
The ape-man saw that to charge that
wild horde. armed as they were with
guns. and barricaded behind the locked
gates of the village. would be a futile
task. and so he returned to WaZiri and
advised him to wait: that he. Tarzan,
had a better plan. hut a moment before
one of the fugitives had related to Wa
ziri the story Of the atrOcious murder
Of the old chiefs wife, and so crazed
with rage was the old man that be cast
discretion to the winds. Calling his
warriors about him. he commanded
them to charge. and with brandishing
spears and savage yells the little force
of scarcely more than a hundred dash
ed madly toward the village gates. Be
fore the clearing had been half crossed
the Arabs opened up a whitening hre
from behind the palisade.
With the first vOlley WaZiri fell
The speed of the chargers slackened
Another volley brought down a bali
dozen more. A few reached the bar
red gates only to be shot In their
tracks without the ghost OF a chance
to gain the inside of the palisade. and
then the whole attack cr,impled. and
the remaining warriors scampered
back into the forest.
AS they ran the raiders opened the
gates. rushing after them to complete
the days work with the utter exter-
mination of the tribe. Tarzan had
beer among the last to turn back to-
ward the forest. and now as he ran
slowly he turned from time to time to
speed a we'll aimed arrow into the
body Of a pursuer.
Once within the jungle he fonnd a
little knot of determined blacks walt