Evening public ledger. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1914-1942, 1916-05-27
CuApTER XIy-ContInued

ward their camp was constantly besieged
BY hundreds of snarling, creamlng devils,
The swedes. rifles in hand, repelled nu-
merous savage charges, which lacked only
efIicient leadership to have rendered them
as effective in results as they were terrify-
ing in appearance. Time and time again
the two men thought they saw the smooth
ajtinned body of the wild apeman moving
among thes balloons in the forest and the
belief that he might head a charge upon
them proved most disquieting. They would
have given much for n clean shot at him.
for to him they attributed the loss of their
specimen and the ugly attitude of the ba-
boons toward them
"The fellow must be the same we fired
on several years ago." said Malbihn. THAT
time he was accompanied by a gorilla. Did
you get a good look at him, Carl2"
yes" replied Jensen. He was not FIVE
paces from me when / fired at him. He ap-
pears to be an intelligent-lookng European
land not much more than lad. There
IL nothing of the imbecile or degenerate in
his features or expression. as is usually
true in similar cases where some lunatic
escapes into the woods and by living in filth
and nakedness, wins the title of wild man
among the peasants of the neighborhood
No this fellow is Of different stuff--and
80 infinitely more to be feared. AS much as
l should like a shot at him, / hope he stays
away; should he ever deliber ately lead
charge against us 1 wouldn't give much for
our chances II we happened to fail to bag
him at the frst rush.
But the white giant did not appear again
TO lead the balloons against them, and
finally the angry brutes themselves wan
dered off into the jungle, leaving the
frightened safari in peace
The next day the Swedes set out for
Kovudoos village, bent on securing pos
session OF the person of the white girl
whom Kovudoos runner had told them lay
captive in the chiefs village. How they
were to accomplish their end they did not
know. Force was out of the question,
though they would not have hesitated to
use it had they possessed 1t.
In former years they had marched rough.
shod over enormous areas, taking toll by
brute force even when kindliness diplo-
macy would have accomplished more;
but now they were in bad straits-so bad
that they had not shown their true colors
scarce twice in a year, and then only when
they came upon an isolated village, weak In
numbers and poor in courage.
Kovudoo was not of these. and though his
village was in way remote from the more
populous district to the north, his power
was such that he maintained an acknow-
lodged suzerainty over the thin thread of
villages which connected him with the saw
age lords to the north.
To have antagonized him would have
spelled ruin for the Swedes. 1t would have
meant that they might never reach civiliZa-
tion by the northern route. To the west,
the village of the sheik lay directly in their
path barring them effectually To the east,
the trail was unlInowa to them, and to the
south there was no trail.
So the two Swedes approached the vii
lage of Kovudoo with friendly words upon
their tongues and deep craft in their hearts.
Their plans were we'll made. There was
no mention of the white prisoner-they
chose to pretend that they were not aware
that Kovudoo had a white prisoner. They
exchanged gifts with the old chief, haggling
with his plenipotentiaries over the value
of what they were to receive for what they
gave as Is customary and proper when one
has no Interior motives. Unwarranted gen.
erosity would have aroused suspicion.
During the paaver which followed. they
retailed the gossip of the villages through
which they had passed, receiving in ex-
change such news as Kovudoo possessed.
these native ceremonies always are to
Europeans. Koyudoo made no mention of
bis prisoner, and from his generous offers
OF guides and presents seemed anxious to
assure himself of the speedy departure of
his guests
1t was Malbihn who. quite casually. near
the close of their talk, mentioned the fact
that the sheik was dead. Kovudoo evtnced
interest and surprise
You did not know it ?" asked Malbihn,-
That is strange. 1t was during the last
moon. He fell from his horse when the
beast stepped in hole. The horse fell
upon him. When his men came up, the
Hheik was quite dead"
Kovudoo scratched his head. He was
much disappointed. No shek meant no
worthless, unless he utilized her for feast
ora mate
The latter thought aroused him. He
spat at a small beetle crawling through the
dust before him. He eyed Malbihn ap-
pralsingly. These white men were peculiar.
Taey Travelled far from their, own villages
without women. Yet he knew they cared
Tor women
But how much did they care for them7
That was the question that disturbed Ko-
vudoo
7 know where there is white girl" he
said unexpectedly 'If you wish 10 buy her,
she may be had cheap"
Malbihn shrugged. I'VE have TROUBLE
enough, koyudoo," he said. without bur-
dening ourselves with an old. broken-down
she hyena, and as for paying for one"
Malbihn snapped his fingers In derison
She Is young" said Koyudoo, "and good
The Swedes laughed "There are no
soodiooking white women In the jungle, Ko-
Vudoo," said Jensen. You should be
ashamed TO try TO make fun OF old friends.
hoYudoo sprang TO his feet Come, he
say"
Aalbihn and Jensen rose 10 follow him.
and as they did so their eyes met, and
Malbihn slowly dropped one OF his lids In
q sly wink Together they followed Kovu-
doo toward his hut, In the dim interior
tthey discerned the figure OF woman lying
pound upon a sleeping mat
Malbihn took a single glance and turned
awayA -she must be thousand years old,
hovudoo" he said as he left the hut
She Is Young cried the savage 1t Is
aark Ia here. You cannot see. Wait, viii
nave her brought out In the sunlight" And
ne commanded the two warriors who
watched the girl 70 cut the bonds from her
ankles and lead her forth for inspection.
Aalbihn ana Jensen eyinced no eager
hess, though both were fairly bursting With
it--not to see the girl. but 70 obtain posses
sion OF her. They cared not II she had the
lace Of marmoset or the figure or pot
pellied Kovudoo himself All that they
Wished 10 know was that she was the girl
Fho had baen stolen from the sheik several
tfafs before. They thought That snst
would recognize her for such II sne ssfe
Indeed the same but even 50. me testi
ff' |'| H51 ~