d him that even while he was yet a little boy,
scarce out of babyhood, he had learned to view her with a hatred as
deep-rooted as is the affection of most little children for their
mothers.

When he had come to man's estate he had defended himself from the
woman's brutal assaults as he would have defended himself from another
man--when she had struck, Billy had struck back; the only thing to
his credit being that he never had struck her except in self-defense.
Chastity in woman was to him a thing to joke of--he did not believe
that it existed; for he judged other women by the one he knew best--his
mother. And as he hated her, so he hated them all. He had doubly hated
Barbara Harding since she not only was a woman, but a woman of the class
he loathed.

And so it was strange and inexplicable that the suggestion of the girl's
probable fate should have affected Billy Byrne as it did. He did not
stop to reason about it at all--he simply knew that he felt a mad and
unreasoning rage against the creatures that had borne the girl away.
Outwardly Billy showed no indication of the turmoil that raged within
his breast.

"We gotta find her, bo," he said to Theriere. "We gotta find the skirt."

Ordinarily Billy would have blustered about the terrible things he would
do to the objects of his wrath when once he had them in his power; but
now he was strangely quiet--only the firm set of his strong chin, and
the steely glitter of his gray eyes gave token of the iron resolution
within.

Theriere, who had been walking slowly to and fro about the dead men, now
called the others to him.

"Here's their trail," he said. "If it's as plain as that all the way we
won't be long in overhauling them. Come along."

Before he had the words half out of his mouth the mucker was forging
ahead through the jungle along the well-marked spoor of the samurai.

"Wot kind of men do you suppose they are?" asked Red Sanders.

"Malaysian head-hunters, unquestionably," replied Theriere.

Red Sanders shuddered inwardly. The appellation had a most gruesome
sound.

"Come on!" cried Theriere, and started off after the mucker, who already
was out of sight in the thick forest.

Red Sanders and Wison took a few steps after the Frenchman. Theriere
turned once to see that they were following him, and then a turn in the
trail hid them from his view. Red Sanders stopped.

"Damme if I'm goin' to get my coconut hacked off on any such wild-goose
chase as this,"