The Adventures of Kathlyn

swift running and shoulder deep, and she was forced to swim strongly to gain the opposite shore. She dragged herself up to the bank and, once there, looked back. What she saw rather aston

aw her gaze. How his mighty shoulders heaved and pulled! But down, down, lower and lower, till nothing but the great maned

eared stirred and glistened and shuddere

the daytime. She could see the dome from where she stood. Like Ishmael, she must go on, forever and forever on. Was God watching over her? Was it His hand which stayed the onslaught of the beast an

Winnie, and her sweetheart, and they seemed to be toasting her from the end of a long tab

a clump of trees. Here she saw a way of saving her weary limbs many a rugged mile.

s of two rested a pole from which dangled the lifeless body of a newly killed leopard. They were bringing it in as a gift to the

et and his Koran, and put little faith in miracles and still less in holy men who performed them, the advent of the white priestess deeply mys

und two greatly terrified holy men, shrilling their "Ai! Ai!"

ng?" asked one of the

priestess; the sacred fir

is th

for in evil, Siva, represented by the lion, is more powerful than Vishn

river and see what these queer gods are doing. We'll

a dog-trot. They had always been eager regarding this lion. In the

r was not possible for any beast of the jungle. Yet the lion had vanished completely, as though he had been given wings. They stood about in awe

and!" he cried

equired solid transportation, after the manner of human beings? They became angry. A raft was a raft, substantial, necessary; and there

gh priestess beware of the mugger, for h

comfortably upon suicides and the dead, which are often cast into the river to be purified. The Hindus are

all she had to do was to pole away from the numerous sand-bars

eous beyond words arose-a fat, aged, crafty crocodile. His corrugated snout was thrust quickly over the ed

crambled. She turned in time to see the crocodile's tearful [Transcriber's note: fearful?] eyes staring up a

tones which she hurled into the water. The instinct to live flamed so strongly in her that the crust of civilization fell away like mist before the sun, and for a long

till held in her hand. She lost all sense of time and compass

er. The stone dropped with a thud at her feet. The savage in her had not abated in the least; only her body was terribly worn and wearied and the robe, muddied and torn, enveloped her like a veil o

base of the tree. There was also a bundle of dry rushes which some devotee had forgotten. At least, yonder platform would afford safety through the night. So, with the last bit of strength at her command, she gathered up the rushes and climbed to the platform, arranging her bed behin

their way to Allaha to pray in that temple known to offer prote

ilgrimages are as tame as rabbits would be to the hunter of lions. They will walk from Bombay to Benares, from Madras to L

g Kathlyn in peace. But later, when the moon poured its white, cold radiance ov

edily, from time to time throwing a hasty, apprehensive glance over his sleek shoulders. The buffaloes never stirred; where they were it was safe. Across the river a bulky shadow moved into the li

permitted to see: truce water, where the wild beasts do not kill one another. She grew so interested that

ce dramatically, the buffaloes simply moved closer

vely; some other time. Then he, too, sat on his haunches and washed his face, but with infinite gracefulness. It occurred to the watcher that, familiar as she was with the habits of wild beasts, never had she witnessed a tiger or a lio

n licked his beautiful sides, purring; for the night was so still and the beast was so near that she

ater, squealing, making sport, squirting water over their backs, and rolling, head under; and they buffeted one another amiably, and there was a baby who seemed to ge

o stuck his head up over the edge of the platform. The surprise was mutual. Kathlyn pushed the idol towar

it there. He found Rajah, the elephant, the howdah gone, and only the ornamental headpiece discovered to Bruce that

the jungle and not even the tried hunters could find her. She was lost. Bruce, though in his heart of hearts

h, Durga Ram, one of these fine day

*

er thinner, but never had she been so hardy, so clear eyed, so quick and lithe in her actions. She had lived precariously, stealing her food at dusk from the tent

o had become so hateful to her as the scavengers of the jungle. There was something to admire in the tiger, the leo

his finding her had long since died within her. Every night when she climbed to her platform she vowed she would sta

ts were ridden by mahouts. Two other elephants were being jostled toward the stockade, evidently new captives. They proceeded passively, however, for elephants submit to captivity with less real trouble than any other wild beast. Kathlyn crouched low in the grass and waited till the men and elephants entered the stockade; then s

e could not see the stockade from where she now

of the jungle, and she scrupulously attended her affairs as they attended theirs. Sometimes the great striped tiger prowled about the base of the tree, sharpened his claws on the bark, but he never attempted to ascend to the platform.

hat night, and Kathlyn understood by this that th

leopards came for drink. They had not cared to seek their lair during the night on accou

about the tree, and the male climbed up as far as the platform. Kathlyn

gainst the tree trunk. Two cats fled. Immediately th

r had espied the parent leopards. The rifle shot had frightened one of the wild elephants. With a mighty plunge he had broken

e. The ground about was of clay, merging into sand as it sloped toward the river. The frantic runa

m severe bodily harm. When she recovered her senses she was

and she was conducted to the stockade. She u