mself off. I was between him and the
entrance, and he did not pass me; yet he seemed to have gone away. I
listened, but could get no clew as to where he was. This puzzled me, and
when I regained the outside I sat down to watch.

He never came out of the entrance, of that I was certain; yet at the end
of several minutes he chuckled at my elbow. Again I ran after him, and
again he ran into the cave; but this time I stopped at the mouth. I
dropped back a short distance and watched. He did not come out, yet, as
before, he chuckled at my elbow and was chased by me a third time into
the cave.

This performance was repeated several times. Then I followed him into
the cave, where I searched vainly for him. I was curious. I could not
understand how he eluded me. Always he went into the cave, never did he
come out of it, yet always did he arrive there at my elbow and mock me.
Thus did our fight transform itself into a game of hide and seek.

All afternoon, with occasional intervals, we kept it up, and a playful,
friendly spirit arose between us. In the end, he did not run away from
me, and we sat together with our arms around each other. A little later
he disclosed the mystery of the wide-mouthed cave. Holding me by the
hand he led me inside. It connected by a narrow crevice with another
cave, and it was through this that we regained the open air.

We were now good friends. When the other young ones gathered around
to tease, he joined with me in attacking them; and so viciously did we
behave that before long I was let alone. Lop-Ear made me acquainted with
the village. There was little that he could tell me of conditions and
customs--he had not the necessary vocabulary; but by observing his
actions I learned much, and also he showed me places and things.

He took me up the open space, between the caves and the river, and into
the forest beyond, where, in a grassy place among the trees, we made a
meal of stringy-rooted carrots. After that we had a good drink at the
river and started up the run-way to the caves.

It was in the run-way that we came upon Red-Eye again. The first I knew,
Lop-Ear had shrunk away to one side and was crouching low against the
bank. Naturally and involuntarily, I imitated him. Then it was that I
looked to see the cause of his fear. It was Red-Eye, swaggering down the
centre of the run-way and scowling fiercely with his inflamed eyes. I
noticed that all the youngsters shrank away from him as we had do