第76章

Diana of the Jungle

JANE had made her first kill and she was very proud of it.It was not a very formidable animal--only a hare; but it marked an epoch in her existence.Just as in the dim past the first hunter had shaped the destinies of mankind so it seemed that this event might shape hers in some new mold.No longer was she dependent upon the wild fruits and vegetables for sustenance.Now she might command meat, the giver of the strength and endurance she would require successfully to cope with the necessities of her primitive existence.

The next step was fire.She might learn to eat raw flesh as had her lord and master; but she shrank from that.The thought even was repulsive.She had, however, a plan for fire.She had given the matter thought, but had been too busy to put it into execution so long as fire could be of no immediate use to her.

Now it was different--she had something to cook and her mouth watered for the flesh of her kill.She would grill it above glowing embers.Jane hastened to her tree.Among the treasures she had gathered in the bed of the stream were several pieces of volcanic glass, clear as crystal.She sought until she had found the one in mind, which was convex.Then she hurried to the ground and gathered a little pile of powdered bark that was very dry, and some dead leaves and grasses that had lain long in the hot sun.Near at hand she arranged a supply of dead twigs and branches--small and large.

Vibrant with suppressed excitement she held the bit of glass above the tinder, moving it slowly until she had focused the sun's rays upon a tiny spot.She waited breathlessly.How slow it was! Were her high hopes to be dashed in spite of all her clever planning? No! A thin thread of smoke rose gracefully into the quiet air.Presently the tinder glowed and broke suddenly into flame.Jane clasped her hands beneath her chin with a little gurgling exclamation of delight.She had achieved fire!

She piled on twigs and then larger branches and at last dragged a small log to the flames and pushed an end of it into the fire which was crackling merrily.It was the sweetest sound that she had heard for many a month.But she could not wait for the mass of embers that would be required to cook her hare.As quickly as might be she skinned and cleaned her kill, burying the hide and entrails.That she had learned from Tarzan.It served two purposes.One was the necessity for keeping a sanitary camp and the other the obliteration of the scent that most quickly attracts the man-eaters.

Then she ran a stick through the carcass and held it above the flames.By turning it often she prevented burning and at the same time permitted the meat to cook thoroughly all the way through.

When it was done she scampered high into the safety of her tree to enjoy her meal in quiet and peace.Never, thought Lady Greystoke, had aught more delicious passed her lips.She patted her spear affectionately.It had brought her this toothsome dainty and with it a feeling of greater confidence and safety than she had enjoyed since that frightful day that she and Obergatz had spent their last cartridge.She would never forget that day--it had seemed one hideous succession of frightful beast after frightful beast.They had not been long in this strange country, yet they thought that they were hardened to dangers, for daily they had had encounters with ferocious creatures; but this day--she shuddered when she thought of it.And with her last cartridge she had killed a black and yellow striped lion-thing with great saber teeth just as it was about to spring upon Obergatz who had futilely emptied his rifle into it--the last shot--his final cartridge.For another day they had carried the now useless rifles; but at last they had discarded them and thrown away the cumbersome bandoleers, as well.How they had managed to survive during the ensuing week she could never quite understand, and then the Ho-don had come upon them and captured her.Obergatz had escaped--she was living it all over again.

Doubtless he was dead unless he had been able to reach this side of the valley which was quite evidently less overrun with savage beasts.

Jane's days were very full ones now, and the daylight hours seemed all too short in which to accomplish the many things she had determined upon, since she had concluded that this spot presented as ideal a place as she could find to live until she could fashion the weapons she considered necessary for the obtaining of meat and for self-defense.

She felt that she must have, in addition to a good spear, a knife, and bow and arrows.Possibly when these had been achieved she might seriously consider an attempt to fight her way to one of civilization's nearest outposts.In the meantime it was necessary to construct some sort of protective shelter in which she might feel a greater sense of security by night, for she knew that there was a possibility that any night she might receive a visit from a prowling panther, although she had as yet seen none upon this side of the valley.Aside from this danger she felt comparatively safe in her aerial retreat.

The cutting of the long poles for her home occupied all of the daylight hours that were not engaged in the search for food.

These poles she carried high into her tree and with them constructed a flooring across two stout branches binding the poles together and also to the branches with fibers from the tough arboraceous grasses that grew in profusion near the stream.