llow. The five- and three-toed
hoofs of the ancient horned dinosaurs had become talons in the gryf,
but the three horns, two large ones above the eyes and a median horn on
the nose, had persisted through all the ages. Weird and terrible as was
its appearance Tarzan could not but admire the mighty creature looming
big below him, its seventy-five feet of length majestically typifying
those things which all his life the ape-man had admired--courage and
strength. In that massive tail alone was the strength of an elephant.
The wicked little eyes looked up at him and the horny beak opened to
disclose a full set of powerful teeth.
"Herbivorous!" murmured the ape-man. "Your ancestors may have been, but
not you," and then to Pan-at-lee: "Let us go now. At the cave we will
have deer meat and then--back to Kor-ul-ja and Om-at."
The girl shuddered. "Go?" she repeated. "We will never go from here."
"Why not?" asked Tarzan.
For answer she but pointed to the gryf.
"Nonsense!" exclaimed the man. "It cannot climb. We can reach the cliff
through the trees and be back in the cave before it knows what has
become of us."
"You do not know the gryf," replied Pan-at-lee gloomily.
"Wherever we go it will follow and always it will be ready at the foot
of each tree when we would descend. It will never give us up."
"We can live in the trees for a long time if necessary," replied
Tarzan, "and sometime the thing will leave."
The girl shook her head. "Never," she said, "and then there are the
Tor-o-don. They will come and kill us and after eating a little will
throw the balance to the gryf--the gryf and Tor-o-don are friends,
because the Tor-o-don shares his food with the gryf."
"You may be right," said Tarzan; "but even so I don't intend waiting
here for someone to come along and eat part of me and then feed the
balance to that beast below. If I don't get out of this place whole it
won't be my fault. Come along now and we'll make a try at it," and so
saying he moved off through the tree tops with Pan-at-lee close behind.
Below them, on the ground, moved the horned dinosaur and when they
reached the edge of the forest where there lay fifty yards of open
ground to cross to the foot of the cliff he was there with them, at the
bottom of the tree, waiting.
Tarzan looked ruefully down and scratched his head.
7
Jungle Craft
Presently he looked up and at Pan-at-lee. "Can you cross the gorge
through the trees very rapidl
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