Evening public ledger. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1914-1942, 1916-05-22

of the long knife that the Arab wore. Then
she raised her casped hand above her head
and drove an imaginary blade into her
breast above her heart,
Korak understood The old man would
kill her
The girl came to his side again and stood
there trembling She did not fear him.
a terrible beating at the hands of the sheik.
Never, in her memory had another so he.
friended her. She looked UP into his face
1t was n boyish, handsome face, nut.brown
like her own. She admired the spotted
leopard skin that crcled his 1.-THE body
from one shoulder to his knees
The metal anltlets and armlets adorning
him aroused her envy, Always had she
coveted something of the kind; but never
had the shek permitted her more than the
single cotton garment that barely sufficed
to cover her nakedness. No furs or silks
or jewelry had there ever been for little
Meriem.
And Korak looked at the girl. He had
always held girls In species of contempt.
Boys who associated with them were, In
his estimation molycoddes. He wondered
what he should do.
Could he leave her here to be abused,
possibly murdered, by the Vilainous old
Arab, MOI But, on the other hand, could
he take her into the jungle with him?
What could he accomplish burdened by
weak and frightened girl? She would
scream at her own shadow when the moon
came out upon the jungle night and the
great beasts roamed, moaning and roaring,
through the darkness
He stood for several minutes buried in
| thought. The girl watched his face, won
derlng what was passing in his mind. She,
too was thinking of the future.
| She feared to remain and suffer the
| vengeance of the sheik There was no one
| In all the world to whom she might turn
| than this half-naked stranger. who had
| dropped miraculously from the clouds to
| save her from one of the sheik's accus-
toned beatings. Would her new friend
| leave her now? Wistfully she gazed at his
| intent face. She moved Il little closer to
| him. laying a SLIM brown hand upon his
| arm
The contact awakened the lad from his
| absorption. He looked down at her. and
| then his arm went about her shoulders once
| more, for he saw tears upon her lashes.
Come" he said, "the jungle is kinder
| than man. You shall live in the Jungle,
and Korak and Akut will protect you"
She did not understand his words, but
the pressure of his arm drawing her away
| from the PROSTATE Arab and the tents was
| quite Ineligible One little arm crept
about his waist and together they walked
toward the palisade.
Beneath the great tree that had harbored
| Korak while he watched the girl at play
| he lifted her in his arms and. throwing her
| lightly across his shoulder, leaped nimbly
| into the lower branches. Her arms were
| about his neck. and from one little hand
Geeka dangled down his straight young
| back.
And so Merlem entered the jungle with
| Korak, trusting, in her childish innocence
| the stranger who had befrended her; and
| perhaps influenced in her belief by that
strange intutive power possessed by
| woman.
She had no conception of what the future
might hold. She did not know, nor could
| she have guessed, the manner of life led
| by her protector. Possibly she pictured n
distant village similar to that of the sheik
| in which lived other white men like the
| stranger. That she was to be taken into
! the savage, prmeval life of a jungle-beast
| could not have occurred to her.
Had it, her little heart would have palpi-
| tated with fear. Often had she wished to
run away from ,he crueltes of the sheik
and Nahum; but the dangers of the jungle
| had always deferred her.
The two had gone but short distance
| from the village when the girl spied the
| huge proportions of the great Akut. With
| a half-stihed scream she clung more closely
to Korak, and pointed fearfully toward the
ape.
Akut thinking that the Killer was re-
| turning with a prisoner. came growing
| toward them-a little girl aroused TO more
| sympathy in the beasts heart than would
a fulI-grown bull ape. She was a stranger,
and therefore to be killed He barred his
| yellow fangs as he approached; and to his
| surprise the Killer barred his likewise, but
he barred them at Akut, and snarled menac-
| ingly.
"Ah," thought Akut "the Killer has
| taken mater And so. obedent to the
tribal laws of his kind, he left them alone,
| becoming suddenly absorbed In a fuzzy
caterpillar of peculiarly succulent appear
| ance.
The Iarva disposed of. he glanced from
the corner of an eye at Korak. The youth
had deposited his burden upon large
limb, where she cung desperately to keep
from falling.
"She will accompany u.s." said Korak to
| Akut, Jerking a thumb in the direction OF
the girl do not harm her. We will pro-
| tect her"
Akut shrugged. To be burdened by the
| young of man was in no way to his liking
He could from her evident fright at
her position on the branch, and from the
terrified glances she cast in his direction,
that she was hopelessly unfit.
BY all the ethics of Akuts training and
inheritance the unfit should be eliminated;
| but If the Killer wished this she, there was
nothing TO be done about II but to tolerate
her.
Akut certainly didn't want her-of that
he was quite positive Her skin was too
smooth and hairless; quite snakelike in
fact, and her face most unattraetive.
Not at all like that of certain lovely she
| ne had particularly noticed among the apes
In the amphitheatre the previous night
All there was true feminine beauty for
you-a great. generous mouth lovely, vel
low fangs, and the cutest, softest side
| whiskeTs
Akut sighed. Then he rose, expanded his
great chest, and strutted back and forth
along a substantial branch, for even puny
thing like this she of Korak's might admire
his fine coat and his graceful carriage,
CONTINUED TOMORROW
An1nnnr W,