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Show liaaaVMaailMBajBaaaaanMaaaaiaaalHaM BEFORE ADAM By JACK LONDON Copyright, 1907. by the MacMIllan Company SYNOPSIS A modern city boy tells of hla strange dreams whon. ns Ulg Tooth, he lived In prehlstorlo times. When he U a mere bnbr he la saved from a wild boar by the nelllty of Ills mother and hit father attacks the savage pig. ' Driven from home by the Chatterer, ho goes to join the folk, who live In caves In a bluff. lied Eye, a powerful savage, attacks him, and he and Lop t:.ir become friends. Saber Tooth, a tiger, appears. Ths folk drlvo the tlier away, and Bro- ken Tooth la MlU-d by Are man, who I uses a strange weapon, a bow and arrow. I A fire man shoojs Ul Tooth In the leg. , and Lop Ear saves his lite. They capture two wild dog pups. nt? Tooth and Lop Ear are chased Into their cave by Ited Eye, but they attack him with atones and drlve'hlm aitay. I Lop Ear and Dig Tooth moke a crude raft and anil down a river. They see the I Swift One, a girl, but cannot overtake her. " They havo n narrow escape when nd Cyo nttacka them and moke a long Journey Jour-ney to the Klre People's country. They play with the fire of the Fire People Peo-ple and start a great conflagration. The Fire Peoplo drlvo them away. Dig Tooth hoc another narrow escape from Ited C)e. and his elstcr la killed by tho flro mon. who wound Lop Enr. The Fire Teoplo continue their deadly attack. at-tack. Dig Tooth and the Swift One are mnrrlcd. Red Eye pursues the Swift One. He captures her. IJI Tooth attacks him, and tho tight Is stopped by the rush of Saber Tooth. The Flro People massacre the folk. Dig Tooth, the Swift One nnd a handful of the folk flee far to tho south and seek a new home. Rod Eye Joints tho Tree People. pened. There this no warning. A great body iiuesupJ down upon the-four the-four cf us locked ttgelher. Wo were driven violently npart nnd rolled over nnd over, nnd in tho suddenness of surprise we released Our holds on one another. At th moment of the shock Pig Tnce screamed terribly. I did not know v.lmt hud happened, though 1 smelted tiger nnd caught n glimpse of striped fur na I sprang for n tree. It was old Snher Tooth. Aroucd In Ms lair by the tiolsc we hnd made he had crept upon us unnoticed. The Swift One gnlucd the next tree to mine, nud 1 Immediately Joined her. I put lny arms around her nnd held het cloi to mo while she whimpered and cried softly. Prom the ground came a mini ling nnd crunching of bones. It was Saber Tooth milking his supper of what had been Big Pace. From beyond, be-yond, with Inflamed rims and eye. Bed Eye poered down. Here was u monster mightier than he. Tho Swift One and I turned nnd went away quietly through the trees townrd the cave, while the folk gathered overhead and riiowered down abuse nnd twigs nud brandies upon their ancient enemy. ene-my. He lashed his tnll and snnrleil. but went on eating. And In such fashion were we saved. It was n mere accident the sheerest accident. Else would I have died there In Bed Eye's clutch, nnd thero would have been no bridging of time to tho tune of n thousand centuries down to n progeny that reads newspapers nnd rides on electric enrs-ny. nnd that writes narratives of bygonu happenings happen-ings even nn tub b written. It was In tho early full of tho following follow-ing year that it happened. After his ! failure to get the Swift One, Ited Eye I had taken nnothcr wife, and. strange to , relate, she was still olive. Stranger still, they had n baby several months old-Bed Eye's llrst child. Ills previous previ-ous wives had never lived long enough to bear him children. The year had I gone well for all of us. Tho weather I had been exceptionally mild nud food . plentiful. I remember especially the turnips of that year. The nut crop was also very heavy, and the wild plums I were larger and sweeter than usual. i I In short, ft was a golden yenr. And then It happened. It was In the early i i morning, and wo wero surprised in our caves. In tho chill gray light wo nwol.e from sleep, most of us. to encounter . death. The Swift One and I were ' nroused by a pandemonium of screech lng nud gibbering. Our cave was the highest of all ou tho cliff, and wo crept to the mouth and peered down. The open space was filled with tho Fire People. Their cries and yells wero added add-ed to the clamor, but they had order nnd plan, while we folk had none. Each ono of us fought nnd acted for himself, and no ono of us knew the extent of tho calamity that was befalling be-falling us. By the tlmo wo got to stone throwing throw-ing tho Flro People had massed thlcl-at thlcl-at the base of tho cliff. Our first volley must have mashed souio heads, for when they swerved back from tho cliff three of their number were left upon the ground. These wero struggling nnd floundering, nnd ono was trying to crawl awny. But wo fixed them. By this time wo males wero roaring with rage, nnd we rained rocks upon the three men that wero down. Several of tho Oro men returned to drag them Into safety, but our rocks drove the rescuers back. Tho Flro Teoplo became enrnged. Also they beenmo cnutlous. In splto of their nngry yells they kept ut n dls-tanconnd dls-tanconnd sent flights of arrows against I us. This put nn cud to the rock throw- lug. By the tlmo half a dozen of us had becu killed nnd n score Injured tho rest of us retreated Inside our caves. I wns not out of range in my lofty enve. but tho distance wns great enough to spoil effective shooting, nnd the Flro People did not waste many arrows on me. Furthermore. I wns curious. I wanted to see. While the j Swift Ono remained well Inside tho ' enve. trembling with fenr nud making low walling sounds because I would not como In, I crouched nt the entrance I and watched. j Tho fighting had now become Intermittent. Inter-mittent. It wns n sort of deadlock. We wero In tho caves, nnd the iies- ' t.on with the Flro People wns how to get us out. They did not dare como In after us, nnd In general we would not , expose ourselves to their arrows. Oc- i cnsionally, when one of them drew In eloo to tho base of the cliff, ono or i another of tho folk would smnsh n rock down. Iu return ho would bo transfixed trans-fixed by half n dozen arrows. This ruso worked well for some time, but finally tho folk no longer wero Inveigled In-veigled Into allowing themselves. Tho deadlock was complete. Behind tho Flro Peoplo I could see tho little wizened old hunter directing it all. They obeyed blm nnd went hero and there nt his commands. Some of them went Into tho forest nnd returned re-turned with londs of dry wood. Icrves and grnss. All tho Flro Peoplo drew In closer. While most of them stood by with bows nnd arrows, ready to shoot nny of tho folk that exposed themselves, several of the flro men heaped the dry grasa nnd wood nt the mouths of the lower tier of i nves. Out of these henps they conjured the monster mon-ster wo feared tire! At first wisps of smoke arose and curled up the cliff. Then I could see the red tongued flames darting In nnd out through the wood llko tluy snakes. Tho stnoko grew thicker nnd thicker, nt times shrouding shroud-ing the wholo fnco of the cliff. But I wns high up, nnd It did not bother mo much, though It stung my eyes, and I rubbed them with my knuckles. Old Mnrrow Bone wns tho first to bo smoked out. A light fan of nlr drifted the mnofco nway nt tho time so that I saw clearly. lie broke out through the smoke, stepping on n burning couj nnd c;tntr.!r.ir with the -hi - t ' I sudden hurt of It, and essayed to climb up tho cliff. Tho arrow showered about him. Ho carao to n pause on u ' ledge, clutihlng n knob of rock for i support ifisplng and sneezing nnd slinking lib bend. Ho swayed back and forth. Tho feathered ends cf a dozen arrows were sticking out cf , him. no was an old man. nnd ho did not want to die. He swayed wider nnd wider, hl.s knees giving under him. nnd t ns he swayed ho walled most plaintive ly. lib hand iclensed Its grip, mid he ! lurched outward to tho fall. Ills old bones must have been sadly broken. I He -nmned and Mrove feebly to rNe, but n fire man rushed In upon him nud brained him with a club. j And n It happened with Mnrrow Bane so It unpolled with many of the I folk. Unable to endure tho smoke mif. I focatlon, they rushed out to fall beneath be-neath the arrows. Some of tho women nnd children rcmnlued In tho caves to I strangle to death, but the majority met I denth outside. When the fire men had lu this fnsh- Ion cleared the first tier of caves they began mr.klug arrangements to duplicate dupli-cate the operation on the second tier of cnes. It was while they were climbing up with their grass nnd wood that tied Eye. followed by lib wife, with the baby Voiding to' her tightly. No One of Us Knew the Extent of the Calamity That Was Befalling Us. mndo n successful (llifft. up the cliff. The lire men must havVcoucluded that In tho Interval between tho smoking out operations wo would remain in our eaves, so that they were unprepared, and their arrows did not begin to fly till Bed Eye nnd his wife wero well up the wall. When ho reached the top he turned about and glared down at them, roaring nnd beating lib chest They arched their nrrows ut him. and. though he wns untouched, ho fled on. I watched n third tier smoked out and n fourth. A few of tho folk escaped es-caped up tho cliff, but most of them wero shot off the fnco of "it as they strove to climb. I remember Long Lip. Ho got as for as my ledge, crying plt-eously, plt-eously, nu arrow clear through lib chest, tho feathered shaft sticking out behind, tho bone head sticking out before, be-fore, shot through tho back na ho climb-cd. climb-cd. Ho sank down on tuy ledge, bleed-lng bleed-lng profusely at tho mouth. It was about thb tlmo that tho upper up-per tiers seemed to empty themselves ! spontaneously. Nearly all tho folk not I yet smoked out stampeded up thu cliff ut thu same time. TJils was tho saving sav-ing of many. The Flro Peoplo could not shoot nrrows fast enough. They filled the nlr with nrrnwH nnd scores of the stricken folk came tumbling down, but still thero wero u few who reached the top nnd got nway. I The Impulse of flight was now stronger strong-er In mo than curiosity. The arrows had teased flying. The last of the folk seemed gone, though there may havo been a few still hiding lu the upper caves. Tho Swift One nnd 1 started to make n seramblo for tho cllfftop. At sight of us n great cry went up from tho Fire People. This was not caused by me. but by tho Swift One. They were chntterlig excitedly and pointing her out to ono another. They did not try to shoot her. Not nn nrrow wns discharged. They began calling softly and coaxlngly. I stopped und looked down. Sho was afraid nnd whimpered nnd urged me on. So we went up over tho top and plunged Into the trees. Thb event has often caused me to wonder and speculate. If sho were really of their kind she must have been lost from them at n time when kIiu wns too young to remember, else would sho not have been nfruld of them. On tho other hand. It may well have becu that, while she was their kind, she hnd never been lost from them; that sho had been born In tho wild forest far from their hnunts, her father maybe a renegade flro man, her mother may- 1 be one of my own kind, one of the folk. But who shall say? These things nre beyond me, nnd the Swift One knew no more nbout them thnu did I, We lived through a day of terror. Most of tho survivors fled toward the blueberry swamp and took refugo In the forest in Hint neighborhood. And nil day hunting parties of tho Fire Peoplo ranged tho forest, killing us wherever they found us. It must havo been n deliberately executed plan. In-tienslug In-tienslug beyond the limits of their own territory, they had decided on making a conquest of ours. .Sorry tho conquest. con-quest. Wo had no cuauco against them. It was slaughter, ludlscrlmtnnto slaughter, for they spared none, kill-lng kill-lng old nnd youug, effectively rlddluc tho land of our presence. It wns llko tho end of tho world to us. Wo fled to thj trees as n last rcf- Lm uge. only to bo surrounded nnd hll.ed, M family by family. We saw much ofT M this during that day, and. besides. I Lm wnnted to see. Tho Swift '.ne ami I LM never remained long In one tree, nnd LM so escaped being surrounded. But there M seemed no place to go. Tho fire men M were everywhere, bent on their task of Lm extermination. Every vt'iiy we turned M we encountered them, nnd becanxp of fl this we saw much of their handiwork. Lm I did not pee whnt beenmo of my M mother, but I did see the Chntteier H shot down out of the old home tree.. H And I am afraid that nt the sight I H did n hit of Joyous teetering. Before I M leave this portion of my narrative X LM must tell of Ited Eye. Ho wns caught Lm Willi his wife lu n tree down by the M blueberry swamp. The Swift One nnd I stopped long enough lu our flight to- Lm ce ?rho fire men were too Intent upon M their work to notice us, and. further- M more, wo were well screened by tho- M thicket lu which wo crouched. tLm Fully n score of the hunter! wero- M under tho tree discharging nrrows Into 'M It. They nlwnys picked up the!.' nr- " rown when they fell back to earth. I ,JLU could not seo Bed Eye. but I could immW hear him howling from somewhere lu 'll tho tree. - After n uliort Interval his howling: 11 grow umlllcd. He must have crawled ill Into n hollow lu the trunk. But lib 'JH wife did not win thb shelter. An nr- ?iH row brought her to the ground. She HM was severely hurt, for she made no- H effort to get nway. Sho crouched In a 'H sheltering wny over her bnby, whlclt V clung tightly to her, nud made plend- '.M lng signs and sounds to thu flro men. '-iH They gathered about her and laughed 'iH at her, even as Lop Ear nnd I hnd ,'M laughed at the old trco man. And 4.jl even as wo had poked blm with twig W?B and sticks so did tho fire men wltlr sflL'fl Bed Eye's wife. They poked her wltlr H the cmb of their bows und prodded '-ssli her lu the ribs. But she was poor fun. M Sho would not fight, nor, for that mat- H ter, would she get angry. Sho con- H tinned to crouch over her baby nnd to Jt plead. One of the lire men stepped 'H close to her. In bis hand wns n club. H Sho saw and understood, but sho- . mudo only the pleading sounds until H tho blow fell. Bed Eye, In the hollow of tho tninlcv H was safo from their nrrows. They stood together and debated for awhile, , H then' ono of them climbed into tho tree- H What happened up there I could not H tell, but I heard him yell nnd saw the H excitement of those that remained be- 1 neatli. After several minutes lib body ) -" H crashed down to the ground. He did ' H not move. They looked nt him nmt H raised lib head, but It fell back limply- H when they let go. Bed Eyo had no- iH counted for himself. ')H Ck CHAPTER XIV. H T1HEY were very angry. There H 1 I wnH an opening Into tho trunk: B PCSjI close to the ground. They H I2fji?j gathered wood und grass nnd H built u fire. Tho Swift Ono and I, our nruiH around each other, wnlted und watched In the thicket. Sometimes t they threw upon tho flro green branches with many leaves, whereupon tho- H jnioke beenmo very thick. M Wo saw them suddenly swerve bnclc M from tho tree. They wero not quick: ?iioiigli. Bed Hyo's Hying body landed ,-M lu thu midst of them. Ho wns In m jjH frightful rngc. smashing about with his? - H long nnns right nud left. Ho pulled . H tho fnco off ono of them, literally pull- ' ,H ed It off with those gnarly fingers of ,l H lib und those tremendous muscles, lie- ill bit nnothcr through tho neck. The flro- "B men fell back with wild, fierce yells, 'H then rushed upon tilin. Ho managed M to get hold of a club and began crush- PH lng heads llko eggshells. He was too r H much for them, and they weio com- V H pelled to fall back again. This was lib I H chance, and he turned lib back upon H them and ran for It. still howling: H wrnthfully. A few nrrows sped uflcr- H him. but he plunged Into a thicket mid. H was gone. M Tho Swlf One and 1 crept quietly B awny. ulily to run foul of another pur- H ty of lire men. They chased us Into ( H tho blueberry swamp, but we knew the- H tree paths across tho farther morasses, " H where they could not follow on tho- H ground, nnd ho wo escaped. Wo emr.o- H cut on the other side Into a narrow I M strip of forest that separated the blue- I V berry swnmp from the great swamp- . that extended westwnid. Here wo met M Lop Ear. Ho ho had escaped I can- I H not imagine, unless he had not slept ' H the preceding night nt tho caves. ' H Here, lu tho strip of forest, wo might H havo built trco shelters and settled, down, but tho Flro Peoplo were per- ' H forming their work of extermination H thoroughly. In tho afternoon Hair H Fnco and lib wife fled out from ,1 among the trees to the east, passed utt jH and wero gone. They fled silently nnd , ,jH swiftly, with nlnrm lu. their faces. In ' M tho direction from which they had como- i we heard tho cries and yells of the- hunters mid the scrccchtug or some- M me of the folk. Tho Flro People had. JjH found their wny across the swamp. iM The Swift One, Lop Ear and I fol- ' 'j lowed ou thu heels of Hair Face unci' '21 lib wife When we came to the ed'.'o- V M of tho great swamp wo stopped. W I fl did not Know Its paths. It was out-ilde H our territory, and It had been alwiiy f- s H avoided by tho folk. None had over ' H gouo into It ut least to return. In our , -M minds It represented mystery und fenr, H the terrible uiiUnowu. As I say, wo M stopped nt tho edgo of it. We were " H nfrald. Tho cries of thu flro men H wero drawing nearer. We looked nt H ono another. Hair Faco ran out on H tho quaking morass and gained tho , H firmer footing uf a grnss hummock a ',H dozen yards nway. Ills wjfb did not ' H follow. Sho tried to, but shrank back H from tho treacherous surfneo and cow- fl ercd down. ' M Tho Swift Ono did not wait for mev 'fl uor did sho pauso till vho had passed' ' To Be ContlnuoOA "'' f H - "X -- --tfftrn; . ' tBQI . K-4. -r-lJJijgmJ--v-yjijrgi1ysjjA |