Show TARZAN TAR jwAN by BURROUGHS EDGAR 0 RICE AND THE irhe futher author of cf tarzan of the apes JEWELS OF OPAR son of tarzan copyright 1911 1918 by A C mcclurg C ca CHAPTER 17 home f As tarzan of the apes hurtled through the trees the discordant sounds of the buttle battle between the abys and the lions smote more and more distinctly upon his sensitive cars redoubling his assurance that the plight aught of the human element of the conflict was critical indeed at last the glare of the camp fire shone plainly through the intervening trees and a moment later the giant figure of the ape man paused upon an overhanging bough to look down upon the bloody scene of carnage below his quick eye took in the whole scene with a single comprehending glance and stopped upon the figure of a woman standing facing a great lion across the carcass of a horse the carnivore was crouching to spring ns as tarzan discovered the tragic tableau nunia numa was almost beneath the branch upon which the ape man stood naked nahed and unarmed there was inot cot even an instants hesitation upon the part of the latter it was as though lie he had not even paused in ills his swift progress through the llie trees so lightning like ills survey and comprehension of the scene below him so instantaneous his consequent action wide went jane claytons claytona Clay tons eyes in wonder and incredulity as she beheld this seeming apparition risen from the dead the lion was forgotten her own ovin peril everything save the wondrous miracle of tills this strange descente des cence she saw the sinewy form leap to the shoulder of the lion hurtling against the leaping beast like a huge alli animate mate battering ram rain she saw the carnivore brushed aside as he was almost upon her and in the instant she realized that no wraith could thus turn the charge of a maddened lion with brute force greater than tile the brutes tarzan her tarzan livedis lived i A cry of unspeakable gladness broke from her lips only to die in terror as she saw the utter defenseless of her mate and realized that the lion had recovered himself and ana was turning upon tarzan in mad lust for vengeance at the ape mans feet lay the discarded rifle rife of the dead abyssinian whose mutilated corpse corpse sprawled ft here numa had abandoned it the quick glance which had swept the ground for some weapon of defense discovered it and as the lion reared upon his hind legs to seize the rash man thing who had dared interpose its puny strength between numa and his prey the heavy stock whirred whirled through the air and splintered upon the broad broad forehead not as an ordinary mortal might strike a blow did tarzan of the apes strike but with the maddened frenzy of a wild beast backed by the which his wild arboreal joy jov hood lad had bequeathed him pvn the blow ended the splintered stock sock was driven through the splinter splintered d skull into the savage brain and vie cje heavy iron barrel was bent into e rude V in the instant U tat at the lion sank lifeless to the p bound aund jane clayton threw herself i 3 io o the eager arms of por for a brief instant he Itral strained ned ler t dear form to his breast and tl aln n a glance about him awakened uw tho ape man to the dangers which still aur ur rounded them the blacks who had bad witnessed his advent looked on in amazement lis they saw the naked giant leap easily anto the branches bran Clies of the lie tree from whence hence he had dropped so uncannily upon the scene and vanish as he had tome bearing away their prisoner with him unmolested tarzan passed from the camp calop of the from which the din of conflict followed him deep into the jungle until distance gradually obliterated it entirely back to the spot where he had left verper went the ape man joy oy in his heart now where tear fear and sorrow had so ho recently reigned and in his mind a determination to forgive the belgian and aid him to in making good ills his escape hut when lie came to the place was gone and though tarzan called aloud many times lie he received no reply convinced that the man had purposely eluded him for reasons of ills own john clayton felt that he was under no obligations to expose his wife to further danger and discomfort in the prosecution 0 of a more thorough search for the missing belgian lie ile has acknowledged his guilt by ills his flight jane he said we will let him go 90 to lie he in the bed that he liar has made tor for himself straight as homing pigeons the two made their way toward tile the ruin and d desolation eso lation that had once been the center of their happy lives and which was soon to be restored by the willing black hands of laughing laborers made happy again by the return of the master and mistress whom they had mourned as dead past the village of achmet zek their way led them and there they found hilt but the charred remains of the pall sine sade and the nalle nalie nali e huts buts still smoking as mute evidence of tile the wrath anil an vengeance of a powerful eri enemy cilly the iia Wil zirl commented with a gm g m i fai ewla f ai 10 lo god bless them cried jaue jane clayton they cannot be far ahead of us said tarzan bagull and the others the gold Is gone and the jewels of 0 opar june jane but we have each other and the we have love and loyalty and friendship and what list are gold and jewels to these if only poor lived she replied and those other brave fellows who sacrificed their hies in vain endeavor to protect me in the silence of mingled joy and sorrow they passed along through the familiar jungle and as the afternoon was waning there came faintly to the ears of the ape man the murmuring cadence of distant voices we are nearing the jane he h e said 1 I can tn hear them ahead of us they are arc going into camp for the night flight I 1 imagine 11 A half hour later the two came upon a horde of ebon warriors bagull had collected for ills his war of vengeance upon the raiders with them were the captured women of the tribe whom they had found in the village of achmet zek find and tall even among the giant loomed a familiar black form at the side of bagull it was Mu gambl whom jane had bad thought dead amidst the charred ruins of the bungalow ali ah such a reunion I 1 long into the night flight the dancing and singing and laughter awoke the echoes of the somber wood again and again were the hie stories of their various adventures retold again and once again they fought their battles with savage beast and savage man and lawn was already breaking when bagull for the fortieth time ahne narrated how lie he and a handful of warriors had watched the battle for the golden ingots ingols which the file abys of abdul had waged against the arab raiders of achmet zek and how when the victors had ridden away they hey had sneaked out of y 4 I 1 I 1 i hurtling against the leaping beast like a huge animated battering ram the river reeds and stolen away with the precious ingots ingols to hide them w here no robber eye ever could discover them pieced out from the fragments of their various experiences with the belgian the truth concerning the mal malign ign activities of albert become app pp parent only tady J ady greystoke found aught to praise in the llie conduct of the man and it was difficult even for her to reconcile hl his many heinous acts with this one evidence of chivalry and honor deep in the soul of every man said tarzan must lurk the germ of righteousness it was your own virtue jane rather even than your helplessness which awakened for an instant the latent intent decency of this degraded man in that one act he be retrieved himself and when he Is called to face his maker may it outweigh in the balance all the sins he hax had committed and jane clayton breathed a fervent amen 0 0 0 months had passed the labor of the and the gold of opar had rebuilt and re furnished d the nv wasted a sted homestead of the Grey stokes once more the simple life of the great african farm went on as it had lefore the coming of the belgian and the arab forgotten gotten were the sorrows borrows and dangers of yesterday for the first time lu in months lord greystoke felt that he might indulge in a holiday and so a great hunt was organized that the faithful laborers might feast in celebration of the completion lork of their theair work in itself the hunt was a success and ten fell dilys days after its inauguration a well laden safari took up its return march toward tile plain lord and lady greystoke with casull P and milf gambl rode together tit at the head of t the I 1 column laughing and talking together ie lc in that easy familiarity which cow common non interests find and mutual respect breed between honest and intelligent men of any races jane claytona claytons Clay lons tons horse shied suddenly at an object half hidden in the long grasses brasses of an open space in the jungle Tur keen eyes sought quickly for an explanation of the animals action what have we here lie he cried swinging from his saddle and a moment later the four were grouped about a human skull shull and a little litter of whitened human bones tarzan stooped and lifted a leathern pouch from the grisly relies relics of a man the hard outlines of the contents brought an exclamation of surprise to ills lips the jewels of opar he cried holding the pouch aloft and pointing to the bones at his feet all that remains of tile the belgian laughed look wit within hin bwana awana he cried and you will mil see what are the jewels of opar you will see what the belgian gave his life for ond and the black laughed aloud why do you laugh asked tarzan because replied Mu gambl 1 I filled the belgians pouch with river gravel before I 1 escaped the camp of the abys whose prisoners we were I 1 left the belgian only worthless stones while I 1 brought brou glit away with me the jewels he ila had stolen from you that they were afterward stolen from me adlle N bile I 1 slept in the jungle Is my shame nud find my disgrace but at least the belgian lost them open his pouch and you will see tarzan untied the thong which held the mouth of the leathern bag closed and permitted the contents to trickle slowly forth into his open palm mu biu gambes eyes went wide tit at the sight and the others uttered exclamations of 0 surprise and incredulity for from the rusty and weatherworn pouch ran a stream of brilliant scintillating gems the jewels of opar 1 cried tarzan but how did come by them again none could answer tor for both chulk and were dead and no other knew poor devill devil said the ape man as he swung back into his saddle even in death he has made let his sins lie with his bones THE END |