Evening public ledger. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1914-1942, 1916-04-11
CHAPTER VI
With a New Friend


TIME thing, which more nearly resem-
i bled our earthly men than II did the
Martians l had seen, held me pinioned to
the ground with one huge foot, while 1t
jabbered and gesticulated at some answer
ing creature behind me.
This other. which was evidently its mate,
soon came toward us. bearing a mighty
stone cudgel with which 1t evidently In
tended to brain me.
The creatures were about Is feet tall,
standing erect. and had. like the green
Martlans. an intermediary set of arms or
legs, midway between their upper and
lower limbs
Their eyes were close together and
nonprotruding their ears were high set
but more laterally located than those of
the Martians while their snouts and teeth
were strilSlngly like those of our African
gorilla.
Altogether they were not unlovely when
viewed by comparison with the green
Martlans.
The cudgel was swinging in the arc
which ended upon my upturned face when
n bolt of myriad-legged horror hurled
itself through the doorway full upon my
executioner.
with n shiek of fear the ape which
held me leaped through the open window,
but it's mate closed in a terrific death
struggle with my preserver, which was
nothing less than my faithful watch
thing--I cannot bring myself to call 80
hideous a creature, dog
As quickly as possible l gained my
feet, and, backing against the wall, l
witnessed such a battle as 1t Is vouch-
safed few beings to see. The strength,
agility and blind ferocity of these two
creatures Is approached by nothing known
to earthly man.
My beast had an advantage in his first
hold, having sunk its mighty fangs far
into the breast of his adversary but
the great arms and paws of the ape,
backed by muscles far transcending those
of the Martian men / had seen. had
locked the throat of my guardian, and
slowly were choking out his life, and bend
ing back his head and neck upon his
body, where I momentarily expected TO
see the former fall limp at the end OF n
broken neck.
In accomplishing this the ape was tear.
ing away the entire front of its breast.
which was held in the viselike grip of the
powerful Jaws. Back and forth upon the
floor they rolled, neither one emitting a
sound of fear or pain.
Presently l saw the great eyes of my
beast bulging completely from their
sockets and blood flowing from its mouth.
That he was weakening perceptibly was
evident but so also was the ape, whose
struggles were growing momentarily less.
Suddenly l came to myself and, with
that strange instinct which seems ever to
prompt me to my duty, / seized the
cudgel, which had fallen to the floor at
the commencement of the battle, and
swinging it with all the power of my
earthly arms I crashed it full upon the
head of the ape. crushing his skull as
though it had been an eggshell.
Scarcely had the blow descended when
1 was confronted with n new danger.
The brute's mate. recovered from Its
first shock of terror had returned to the
scene of the encounter by way OF the in
terror of the building.
l glimpsed him just before he reached
the, doorway, and the sight of him, now
roaring as he perceived his lifeless fel
low stretched upon the floor, and frothing