Evening public ledger. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1914-1942, 1916-03-04
cuAPTER v11-tcontlnued)

osoaue that the demOralized condition OIL
the guards made possible for the instant
/ thought OF Perry, and but for the
hone that might better encompass his
rsieas9,if myself free. / should have put
tbe thought of freedom from me at once
AS II was, | hastenod on toward the right
searching for an exit toward which NO
sagoths were fleeing. and at last found
it-a low, narrow aperture leading into
a dark corridor.
without thought of the possible CON
seauences | darted into the shadows of
the tunnel, feeling my way along through
the gloom for some distance. The noises
of the amphitheatrc had grown fainter
and fainter, until now all was as silent
as the tomb about me.
Faint light filtered from above through
occasional ventilating and lighting tubes.
but IL was scarce sufficient to enable my
human ewes to cope with the darkness.
and so was forced to move with extreme
care. feeling my way along step by
step, with a hand upon the wall beside
me.
Presently the light increased, and n
moment later, to my delight, | came upon
n fight of steps leading upward, at the
top of which the brilliant light of the
MONDAY sun shonc through an opening in
the ground.
Cautiously I crept up the stairway to
the tunnels end ard, pcerlng out, saw
the broad plain OF phltra before me.
The numerous lofty, granite towers which
mark the several entrances to the sub
terranean city were ali in front of me
behind the plain stretched level and
unbroken to the nearby foothills.
had come to the surface, then, beyond
the city, and so my chances FOR escape
seemed much enhanced.
NV first impulse was TO await darkness
y NAln
deeply implanted are habits of thought;
but of a sudden / reCollected the per-
petual MONDAY brilliance which envelops
Pellucidar, and with a smile | stepped
forth into the daylight
Rank grass waist high, grows upon the
plain of Phutra, the gorgeous towering
grass of the inner world, each particular
blade of which is tipped with a tiny, five
4 pointed blossom-brilllant little stars OF
varying coors that twinkle in the green
foliage to add still another charm TO the
. weird yet lovely landscape.
But then the only aspect which at
tracted me was the distant hills, in which
| hoped to find sanctuary and SO 1
fastened on, trampling the myriad beau
ties beneath my hurrylng feet. ~
Perry says that the force of gravity is
less upon the surface of the inner world
than upon that of the outer. He eX-
planned it all to me once, but was never
particularly brilliant in such matters, and
30 most of it has escaped me.
AS l recall it, the difference Is due in
some part to the Counter-attraction of
that portion of the earths crust directly
opposite the spot upon the face of Pelluci-
dar at which ones calculations are being
made.
Be that as it may. it always seemed to
me that l moved with greater speed and
agility within Pellucidar than upon the
outer surface; there was n certain airy
lightness of step that was most pleasing,
and a feeling of bodily detachment which
I can only compare with that occasionally
experienced in the dreams of most of us.
And as 1 crossed Phutra's hower.be-
spangled plain that time 1 seemed almost
to fly, though how much of the sensation
was due to Perry'S suggestion and how
much to actuality 1 am sure l do not
know
The more thought of Perry the less
pleasure took in my new-found freedom
There could be no liberty for me within
Pellucidar unless the old man shared it
with me, and only the hope that L might
find some way to encompass his release
kept me from turning pack to Phutra.
Just how / was to help Perry / could
scarce imagine, but l hoped that some
fortuitous circumstance might solve the
problem for me. II was quite evident,
however, that little less than n miracle
could aid me; for what could 1 accomplish
in this strange world, naked and un-
armed?
1t WAS even doubtful that could retrace
my steps to Phutra should / once pass
beyond view of the plain; and even were
that possible, what aid could l bring to
Perry, no matter how far l wandered?
The case looked more and more hopeless
the longer I viewed It; yet with a stub.
born persistency / forged ahead toward
the foothills. Behind me no sign of pur-
suit developed; before me saw no living
thing 1t was as though moved through
dead and forgotten world
/ have no idea, of course, how long It
took me to reach the limit OF the plain
but at last entered the foothills, follow,
Ing little canyon upward toward the
mountains Beside me frollcked a laugh.
ing brooklet, hurrying upon its noisy way
down to the silent sea,
In its quiet pools / discovered many
small tish-Of four or five pound weight
should imagine. In appearance, except
as to size and color, they were not unlike
the whale of our seas AS watched them
playing about / discovered not only that
they sucked their young, but that at in.
leryals they rose to the surface to breathe,
as well as to feed upon certain grasses
ana strange, scarlet lichen which grew
upon the rocks just above the water line.
II was this last habit that gave me the
opportunity l craved to capture one of
these herbivorous cetaceans-that is what
Ferry calls them-and make as good a
meal as one can on raw, warm-blooded
Ish; but had become rather used by this
Time, to the eating Of food in its natural
state though l still baked on the eyes
ana entrails, much 10 the amusement OF
caeles
Crouehing beside the brook, l waited
until one of the diminutive purple whales
rose TO nibble at the long grasses which
efefhung the water, and then, like the
nsast OF prey that man really Is, 1 sprang
upon my victim. appeasing my hunger
"hue he yet wriggled TO escape.
Then ] drank from the clear pool and.
after washing my hands and face, con.
unued my flight
ABOVE the source Of the brook / en-
eountered rugged climb to the summit
ot long ridge. Beyond was a steep de-
enfity to the shore Of a placid. inland
sFa upon the quiet surface Of which lay
several beautiful Islands.
he NieW vas charming in the extreme.
ana as no nian on beast was &, be- seen
nisht threaten gay libern. / slid over
- ei4a 6 the bun AID hal. Siding. half
1zaaaas dropped into the delightful valley.