Evening public ledger. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1914-1942, 1917-02-07
THE IVORY CHILD
By II. RIDER HAGGARD
: "Moric." "Kiao Soiomon's Mines" "Ste." etc.

soon. as | have finished rcloadirg Gntombi,
and IL is time 10 be going. ! think | hit
Jana in the eye, but SO big beast viii soon
get over so little a thing as that and look
for us, and the bullet from Iutombi is too
small to kill him, Baas. especially as il is not
likely that either of us could hit him in
the other eve"
Now | sat up and stared Yes. there was
Iians himself looking just the same as
usual only perhaps rather dirticr, engaged
I'm setting a cap on to the nipple of the
little rife lutOmh
Hans" | said in hollow voice, why
the devil are you hore?'
"'ro save you from tho devil of course,
Baas," he replied aptly. Then, resting the
gun against the stone tlN old fellow linclt
down by my side and. throwing his arms
round me, began to hlubbcr over me- ex-
Claming
Just in time, Baas only Just IN time
for as usual Hans made a mess Of things
and judged badly-ill tell you how after
ward Still, just in time, thanks be to your
reverend father the lrcdkant Oh! if he
had delayed me for one more minute you
would have been as fiat "a my nose. Baas
Now come quickly. I've got the camel tied
up there, and he can carry two, being fat
and strong after four days rest with plenty
to eat. This place is haunted, Baas, and
that king Of the devils, Jana, will be back
after US presently, as soon ms he has wiped
the blood out of his eye"
| didn't make any remark. having no
taste for conversation just then. but only
looked at poor Marut who lay by me as
though he We're sleeping.
go Baas," said Hans. there is no need to
trouble about him, for his neck is broken
and he's quite dead. Also, it is as we'll"
he added Cheerfully For, as your rev.
erend father doubtless remembered the
camel could never carry three Moreover.
L, haE y1,nt, To-,
back TO play with him instead of following
us"
Poor Marut! This was his requiem as
sung by Hans
with n last glance at the unhappy man
to whom | had grown attached in a way
during our time of Joint captivity and trial,
! took the arm of the old lGottentot, or
rather leaned upon his shoulder, for at
first | felt too weak to walk by myself and
picked my path with him through the stones
and skeletons Of elephants across the pa-
teau eastward, that is. away from the lake.
About 200 yards from the scene of our
tragedy was a mound of rock similar TO
that on which Jana had appeared. but much
smaller, behind which we found the camel
knecing as a well-traincd beast Of the sort
should do and tethered to Il stone,
As we went, in brief but sufficient Ian
Euage Hans told me his story 1t seemed
that after he had shot the kendah general II
came into his cunning, foreseoing mind
that he might be of more use TO me free
than as a companion in captivity, or that il
! were killed he might in that case live To
bring vengeance on my slaycrs. SO he
| broke away. rs has been described. and
hid till nghtfall on the hillside. Then by
the light Of the moon he tracked us. avoid
Ing the villages, and ultimately found a
place of shelter in a kind of cave in the
forest near to Simba Town, where no peo-
pie lived. Here he fed the camel at night