Evening public ledger. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1914-1942, 1916-06-06

her in the arms of the dapper young Eng.
llshman.
What were his Intentions toward her ?
Did he really love herr How could one
not love her? And she loved him-of that
Korak had had ample proof Had she not
loved him she would not have accepted his
kisses
His Meriem loved anotherl For a long
time he let that awful truth sink deep, and
from II he tried to reason out his future
plan of action. In his heart was a great
desire TO follow the man and slay him;
but there rose in his consciousness the
thought, she loves him.
Could he slay the creature Meriem loved ?
Sadly he shook his head. No. he could
not.
Then came partial decision to follow
Meriem and speak with her. He half
started, and then glanced down at his
nakedness and was ashamed. He, the son
of. "A British peer had thus thrown away his
life, had thus degraded himself to the level
of beast so that he was ashamed to go
to the woman he loved and lay his love at
her feet He was ashamed to go to the
little Arab maid who had been his jungle
playmate, for what had he to offer her?
For years circumstances had prevented
n return to his father and mother, and at
last pride had stepped in and eXpunBed
from his mind the last vestige of any In.
tentlon to return. In n spirit of boyish
adventure he had cast his lot with the
jungle ape The killing of the crook in the
coast inn had filled his childish mind with
terror of the law and driven him deeper
into the wilds. The rebuffs that he had met
with at the hands of men, both black and
white, had lfad their effect upon his mind
while Il was yet in a formative state and
easily influenced.
He had come to believe that the hand
of man was against him, and then he had
found in Merem the only human associa-
ton he required or craved When she had
been snatched from him, his sorrow had
been so deep that the thought of ever
mingling again with human beings grew
still more unutterably distasteful. Finally
and for all time, he thought, the die was
cast. OF his own volition he had become a
BEAST q beast he had lived; a beast he
would die.
Now that II was too late he regretted It.
For now Meriem still living, had been re-
vealed to him in a guise of progress and
advancement that had carried her COM
pletely out of his life. Death itself could
not have further removed her from him.
In her new world she loved a man Of her
own kind. And KoralS knew that IT was
right.
She was not for him--not for the naked,
savage ape. No, she was not for him; but
he still was hers If he could not have
her and happiness, he would at least do
all that lay in his power to assure happi-
ness to her. He would follow the young
Engishman. In the first place, he would
know that he meant Meriem no harm; and
after that though jealousy wrenched his
heart, he would watch over the man Meriem
loved for Meriem's sake.
But God help him IL he thought to
| wrong her!
Slowly he aroused himself. He stood
erect and stretched his great frame, the
| muscles of his arms sliding sinuously be-
meath his tanned skin as he bent his
| clenched fists behind his head.
A movement the ground beneath
caught his eye. An antelope was entering
the clearing. Immediately KoraS became
aware that he was empty-again he was a
beast For a moment love had lifted him
to sublime heights of honor and renunci-
alton.
The antelope was crossing the clearing.
Korak dropped to the ground upon the OPP
posite side of the tree, and so lightly that
not even the sensitive ears of the rumi-
nant apprehended his presence. He un-
colled his grass rope-it was the latest ad'
dition to his armament, yet he was pro-
flcient with 1t. ~.
Often he Travelled with nothing more