Richmond planet. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1883-1938, 1917-10-20

With Mighty Blows of HE open Palmu
He FeIled Ono After Another.
this time picked themselves from the
ground, none Of them much the worse
for his experience except the fellow
who had been the cause of 1t and who
would doubtless nurse sore shoulder
for q week or so.
"Simpson done it." said one Of tho
men. HE stuck pin into tho monk
from behind, and tho monk got him
which served him bloomin we'll right
ON he got the rest Of us, too, 70,
which / can't blame him, since we al,
jumped him to once"
The captain looked Mt Simpson, who
sheepishly admitted the truth of the
allegation; then he stepped over to the
apo rs though to discover for himself
tho sort of temper the beast possessed.
But 1t was noticeable that he kept his
revolver cooked and leveled as he
did So
However, ne spoke soothingly to the
animal who sQuatted at the Russians
side, looking first at one and then IN.
other of tho sailors.
AS the captain approached him the
ape half rose and waddlcd forward to
meet him. UDan his countenance was
tho same straight, searching expression
that had marked his scrutiny OF each
OF the sailors he Ind first encountered
he came quito close to tho officer and
laid a paw upon one Of the mnns
shoulders, studying his face intently
for long moment; then came the OK.
preston OF disappointment, accompa-
MED by what was almost human
sigh, as he turned AWAY to peer In tho
Same curious fashion into tho faces Of
the mate and the two sailors who had
arrived with the officers
In each instance he sighed and passed
on, returning ut length to Paulvitch's
side, where he squatted down once
more, thereafter cvfncing little or no
interest III any OF the other men and
apparently forgctful Of his recent bat
tie with them.
When the party returned aboard the
Marjorie W., Paulvitch was accompa-
MED by the ape. who seemed anxious
to follow him. The captain interposed
no obstacles to the arrangement, and
SO tho great nnthropoid was tacitly nd.
, mitted to membership in the ships
company.
Once aboard he examined each new
face minutely, evincing the same dis
appointment in each instance that Ind
marked his scrutiny Of the others.
Tho officers and scientists aboard Of
ten discussed the beast, but they were
unable to account satisfactorily for the
strange ceremony with which he greet
ed each new face. Had he been discov-
cred upon the mainland or any other
place than the almost unknown island
that had been his homo they would
have concluded that he had formerly
been a pet of man, but that theory was
not tenable III the face Of the isolation
Of his uninhabited island.
He seemed continually to be search
Ing for some one, and during the first
days Of the return voyage from the
island he was often discovered nosing
about in various parts Of the ship, but
after he had seen and examined each
face of the ships company and explor-
Cd every corner Of the vessel, he lapsed
into utter Indifference Of all about him.
Even the Russian elected only casual
interest when no brought him food. Al
other times the apo appeared merely to
tolerate him.
He never showed affection for him or
Tor any one else upon the Marjorie w,
Nor did he at any time eyince any in
dication Of the savage temper that had
marked his resentment Of the attack
OF the sailors upon him at the time
that no had come among them.
Most Of his time was spent I'm the
eye Of the ship, scanning the horizon
ahead, as though he were endowed
With sufficient reason to know that the
vessel was bound for some port where
there would be other human beings to
undergo his searching scrutiny. All In
all, Ajax, as he had been dubbed, was
considered the most remarkable and in
telligent ape that any one aboard the
Marjorie w. had ever seen.
Nor was his intelligence the only re-
markable attribute he owned. His
stature and physique were, for an ape,
awe inspiring. That no was old was
quite evident, but If his age had i'm
paired his physical or mental powers
In the slightest it was not apparent.