The Monster Men ................................................................................................................................................1

Edgar Rice Burroughs ..............................................................................................................................1

As he dropped the last grisly fragment of the dismembered and mutilated body into the small vat of nitric

acid that was to devour every trace of the horrid evidence which might easily send him to the gallows, the

man sank weakly into a chair and throwing his body forward upon his great, teak desk buried his face in his

Beads of perspiration followed the seams of his high, wrinkled forehead, replacing the tears which might

have lessened the pressure upon his overwrought nerves. His slender frame shook, as with ague, and at times

was racked by a convulsive shudder. A sudden step upon the stairway leading to his workshop brought him

trembling and wide eyed to his feet, staring fearfully at the locked and bolted door.

Although he knew perfectly well whose the advancing footfalls were, he was all but overcome by the

madness of apprehension as they came softly nearer and nearer to the barred door. At last they halted before

The man made an effort to take a firm grasp upon himself that no telltale evidence of his emotion might be

"Daddy!" called the girl again, a trace of anxiety in her voice this time. "What IS the matter with you, and

what ARE you doing? You've been shut up in that hateful old room for three days now without a morsel to

eat, and in all likelihood without a wink of sleep. You'll kill yourself with your stuffy old experiments."

"Don't worry about me, sweetheart," he replied in a well controlled voice. "I'll soon be through nowsoon

"I'll give you until noon, Daddy," said the girl in a voice which carried a more strongly defined tone of

authority than her father's soft drawl, "and then I shall come into that room, if I have to use an axe, and bring

Professor Maxon smiled wanly. He knew that his daughter was equal to her threat.

"All right, sweetheart, I'll be through by noon for sureby noon for sure. Run along and play now, like a

Virginia Maxon shrugged her shapely shoulders and shook her head hopelessly at the forbidding panels of the

"My dolls are all dressed for the day," she cried, "and I'm tired of making mud piesI want you to come out

and play with me." But Professor Maxon did not reply he had returned to view his grim operations, and the

As she turned to retrace her steps to the floor below Miss Maxon still shook her head.

"Poor old Daddy," she mused, "were I a thousand years old, wrinkled and toothless, he would still look upon

If you chance to be an alumnus of Cornell you may recall Professor Arthur Maxon, a quiet, slender,

whitehaired gentleman, who for several years was an assistant professor in one of the departments of natural

science. Wealthy by inheritance, he had chosen the field of education for his life work solely from a desire to

be of some material benefit to mankind since the meager salary which accompanied his professorship was not

Always keenly interested in biology, his almost unlimited means had permitted him to undertake, in secret, a

series of daring experiments which had carried him so far in advance of the biologists of his day that he had,

while others were still groping blindly for the secret of life, actually reproduced by chemical means the great

Fully alive to the gravity and responsibilities of his marvellous discovery he had kept the results of his

experimentation, and even the experiments themselves, a profound secret not only from his colleagues, but

from his only daughter, who heretofore had shared his every hope and aspiration.

It was the very success of his last and most pretentious effort that had placed him in the horrifying

predicament in which he now found himself with the corpse of what was apparently a human being in his

workshop and no available explanation that could possibly be acceptable to a matteroffact and unscientific

Had he told them the truth they would have laughed at him. Had he said: "This is not a human being that you

see, but the remains of a chemically produced counterfeit created in my own laboratory," they would have

This phase of the many possibilities which he had realized might be contingent upon even the partial success

of his work alone had escaped his consideration, so that the first wave of triumphant exultation with which he

had viewed the finished result of this last experiment had been succeeded by overwhelming consternation as

he saw the thing which he had created gasp once or twice with the feeble spark of life with which he had

endowed it, and expireleaving upon his hands the corpse of what was, to all intent and purpose, a human

Until nearly noon Professor Maxon was occupied in removing the remaining stains and evidences of his

gruesome work, but when he at last turned the key in the door of his workshop it was to leave behind no

The following afternoon found him and Virginia crossing the station platform to board the express for New

York. So quietly had their plans been made that not a friend was at the train to bid them farewellthe

scientist felt that he could not bear the strain of attempting explanations at this time.

But there were those there who recognized them, and one especially who noted the lithe, trim figure and

beautiful face of Virginia Maxon though he did not know even the name of their possessor. It was a tall well

built young man who nudged one of his younger companions as the girl crossed the platform to enter her

"By jove!" he exclaimed. "Why it's Virginia Maxon and the professor, her father. Now where do you suppose

"I don't knownow," replied the first speaker, Townsend J. Harper, Jr., in a half whisper, "but I'll bet you a

A week later, with failing health and shattered nerves, Professor Maxon sailed with his daughter for a long

ocean voyage, which he hoped would aid him in rapid recuperation, and permit him to forget the nightmare

He believed that he had reached an unalterable decision never again to meddle with the mighty, awe inspiring

secrets of creation; but with returning health and balance he found himself viewing his recent triumph with

The morbid fears superinduced by the shock following the sudden demise of the first creature of his

experiments had given place to a growing desire to further prosecute his labors until enduring success had

crowned his efforts with an achievement which he might exhibit with pride to the scientific world.

His recent disastrous success had convinced him that neither Ithaca nor any other abode of civilization was a

safe place to continue his experiments, but it was not until their cruising had brought them among the

multitudinous islands of the East Indies that the plan occurred to him that he finally adopteda plan the

outcome of which could he then have foreseen would have sent him scurrying to the safety of his own

country with the daughter who was to bear the full brunt of the horrors it entailed.

They were steaming up the China Sea when the idea first suggested itself, and as he sat idly during the long,

hot days the thought grew upon him, expanding into a thousand wonderful possibilities, until it became

The result was that at Manila, much to Virginia's surprise, he announced the abandonment of the balance of

their purposed voyage, taking immediate return passage to Singapore. His daughter did not question him as to

the cause of this change in plans, for since those three days that her father had kept himself locked in his

workroom at home the girl had noticed a subtle change in her parenta marked disinclination to share with

While it grieved her immeasurably she was both too proud and too hurt to sue for a reestablishment of the old

relations. On all other topics than his scientific work their interests were as mutual as formerly, but by what

seemed a manner of tacit agreement this subject was taboo. And so it was that they came to Singapore

Here they spent nearly a month, during which time Professor Maxon was daily engaged in interviewing

Virginia met socially several of the men with whom her father was engaged but it was only at the last

moment that one of them let drop a hint of the purpose of the month's activity. When Virginia was present the

conversation seemed always deftly guided from the subject of her father's immediate future, and she was not

long in discerning that it was in no sense through accident that this was true. Thereafter her wounded pride

It was a Dr. von Horn, who had been oftenest with her father, who gave her the first intimation of what was

forthcoming. Afterward, in recollecting the conversation, it seemed to Virginia that the young man had been

directed to break the news to her, that her father might be spared the ordeal. It was evident then that he

expected opposition, but the girl was too loyal to let von Horn know if she felt other than in harmony with the

proposal, and too proud to evince by surprise the fact that she was not wholly conversant with its every detail.

"You are glad to be leaving Singapore so soon?" he had asked, although he knew that she had not been

"And to a protracted residence on one of the Pamarung Islands?" continued von Horn.

"Why not?" was her rather noncommittal reply, though she had not the remotest idea of their location.

Von Horn admired her nerve though he rather wished that she would ask some questionsit was difficult

making progress in this way. How could he explain the plans when she evinced not the slightest sign that she

"We doubt if the work will be completed under two or three years," answered the doctor. "That will be a long

time in which to be isolated upon a savage little speck of land off the larger but no less savage Borneo. Do

"I am equal to whatever fate my father is equal to," she said, "nor do I think that a life upon one of these

beautiful little islands would be much of a hardship certainly not if it will help to promote the success of

She used the last words on a chance that she might have hit upon the true reason for the contemplated

isolation from civilization. They had served their purpose too in deceiving von Horn who was now half

convinced that Professor Maxon must have divulged more of their plans to his daughter than he had led the

medical man to believe. Perceiving her advantage from the expression on the young man's face, Virginia

The result of her effort was the knowledge that on the second day they were to sail for the Pamarung Islands

upon a small schooner which her father had purchased, with a crew of Malays and lascars, and von Horn,

who had served in the American navy, in command. The precise point of destination was still

undecidedthe plan being to search out a suitable location upon one of the many little islets which dot the

Of the many men Virginia had met during the month at Singapore von Horn had been by far the most

interesting and companionable. Such time as he could find from the many duties which had devolved upon

him in the matter of obtaining and outfitting the schooner, and signing her two mates and crew of fifteen, had

The girl was rather glad that he was to be a member of their little company, for she had found him a much

travelled man and an interesting talker with none of the, to her, disgusting artificialities of the professional

ladies' man. He talked to her as he might have talked to a man, of the things that interest intelligent people

There was never any suggestion of familiarity in his manner; nor in his choice of topics did he ever ignore the

fact that she was a young girl. She had felt entirely at ease in his society from the first evening that she had

met him, and their acquaintance had grown to a very sensible friendship by the time of the departure of the

Ithacathe rechristened schooner which was to carry them away to an unguessed fate.

The voyage from Singapore to the Islands was without incident. Virginia took a keen delight in watching the

Malays and lascars at their work, telling von Horn that she had to draw upon her imagination but little to

picture herself a captive upon a pirate shipthe half naked men, the gaudy headdress, the earrings, and the

fierce countenances of many of the crew furnishing only too realistically the necessary savage setting.

A week spent among the Pamarung Islands disclosed no suitable site for the professor's camp, nor was it until

they had cruised up the coast several miles north of the equator and Cape Santang that they found a tiny

island a few miles off the coast opposite the mouth of a small riveran island which fulfilled in every detail

It was uninhabited, fertile and possessed a clear, sweet brook which had its source in a cold spring in the

higher land at the island's center. Here it was that the Ithaca came to anchor in a little harbor, while her crew

under von Horn, and the Malay first mate, Bududreen, accompanied Professor Maxon in search of a suitable

The cook, a harmless old Chinaman, and Virginia were left in sole possession of the Ithaca.

Two hours after the departure of the men into the jungle Virginia heard the fall of axes on timber and knew

that the site of her future home had been chosen and the work of clearing begun. She sat musing on the

strange freak which had prompted her father to bury them in this savage corner of the globe; and as she

pondered there came a wistful expression to her eyes, and an unwonted sadness drooped the corners of her

Of a sudden she realized how wide had become the gulf between them now. So imperceptibly had it grown

since those three horrid days in Ithaca just prior to their departure for what was to have been but a few

months' cruise that she had not until now comprehended that the old relations of open, goodfellowship had

Had she needed proof of the truth of her sad discovery it had been enough to point to the single fact that her

father had brought her here to this little island without making the slightest attempt to explain the nature of

his expedition. She had gleaned enough from von Horn to understand that some important scientific

experiments were to be undertaken; but what their nature she could not imagine, for she had not the slightest

conception of the success that had crowned her father's last experiment at Ithaca, although she had for years

The girl became aware also of other subtle changes in her father. He had long since ceased to be the jovial,

carefree companion who had shared with her her every girlish joy and sorrow and in whom she had confided

both the trivial and momentous secrets of her childhood. He had become not exactly morose, but rather

moody and absorbed, so that she had of late never found an opportunity for the cozy chats that had formerly

meant so much to them both. There had been too, recently, a strange lack of consideration for herself that had

wounded her more than she had imagined. Today there had been a glaring example of it in his having left her

alone upon the boat without a single European companionsomething that he would never have thought of

As she sat speculating on the strange change which had come over her father her eyes had wandered

aimlessly along the harbor's entrance; the low reef that protected it from the sea, and the point of land to the

south, that projected far out into the strait like a gigantic index finger pointing toward the mainland, the

Presently her attention was arrested by a tossing speck far out upon the rolling bosom of the strait. For some

time the girl watched the object until at length it resolved itself into a boat moving head on toward the island.

Later she saw that it was long and low, propelled by a single sail and many oars, and that it carried quite a

Thinking it but a native trading boat, so many of which ply the southern seas, Virginia viewed its approach

with but idle curiosity. When it had come to within half a mile of the anchorage of the Ithaca, and was about

to enter the mouth of the harbor Sing Lee's eyes chanced to fall upon it. On the instant the old Chinaman was

"Why should I go below, Sing?" queried the girl, amazed by the demeanor of the cook.

"Klick! Klick!" he urged grasping her by the armhalf leading, half dragging her toward the

"You go b'low. Mebbyso Sing flighten 'em. Shoot cannon. Bling help. Maxon come klick. Bling men.

Chase'm 'way," explained the Chinaman. "But plilates see 'em pletty white girl," he shrugged his shoulders

The girl shuddered, and crouching close behind Sing hurried below. A moment later she heard the boom of

the old brass six pounder which for many years had graced the Ithaca's stern. In the bow Professor Maxon

had mounted a modern machine gun, but this was quite beyond Sing's simple gunnery. The Chinaman had

not taken the time to sight the ancient weapon carefully, but a gleeful smile lit his wrinkled, yellow face as he

saw the splash of the ball where it struck the water almost at the side of the prahu.

Sing realized that the boat might contain friendly natives, but he had cruised these waters too many years to

take chances. Better kill a hundred friends, he thought, than be captured by a single pirate.

At the shot the prahu slowed up, and a volley of musketry from her crew satisfied Sing that he had made no

mistake in classifying her. Her fire fell short as did the ball from the small cannon mounted in her bow.

Virginia was watching the prahu from one of the cabin ports. She saw the momentary hesitation and

confusion which followed Sing's first shot, and then to her dismay she saw the rowers bend to their oars again

It was apparent that the pirates had perceived the almost defenseless condition of the schooner. In a few

minutes they would be swarming the deck, for poor old Sing would be entirely helpless to repel them. If Dr.

von Horn were only there, thought the distracted girl. With the machine gun alone he might keep them off.

At the thought of the machine gun a sudden resolve gripped her. Why not man it herself? Von Horn had

explained its mechanism to her in detail, and on one occasion had allowed her to operate it on the voyage

from Singapore. With the thought came action. Running to the magazine she snatched up a feedbelt, and in

The pirates were skimming rapidly across the smooth waters of the harbor, answering Sing's harmless shots

with yells of derision and wild, savage war cries. There were, perhaps, fifty Dyaks and Malaysfierce,

barbaric men; mostly naked to the waist, or with war coats of brilliant colors. The savage headdress of the

Dyaks, the long, narrow, decorated shields, the flashing blades of parang and kris sent a shudder through the

"What do? What do?" cried Sing in consternation. "Go b'low. Klick!" But before he had finished his

exhortation Virginia was racing toward the bow where the machine gun was mounted. Tearing the cover from

it she swung the muzzle toward the pirate prahu, which by now was nearly within range above the vessel's

side a moment more and she would be too close to use the weapon upon the pirates.

Virginia was quick to perceive the necessity for haste, while the pirates at the same instant realized the

menace of the new danger which confronted them. A score of muskets belched forth their missiles at the

fearless girl behind the scant shield of the machine gun. Leaden pellets rained heavily upon her protection, or

At the rate of fifty a minute, a stream of projectiles tore into the bow of the prahu when suddenly a richly

garbed Malay in the stern rose to his feet waving a white cloth upon the point of his kris. It was the Rajah

Muda Saffirhe had seen the girl's face and at the sight of it the blood lust in his breast had been supplanted

At sight of the emblem of peace Virginia ceased firing. She saw the tall Malay issue a few commands, the

oarsmen bent to their work, the prahu came about, making off toward the harbor's entrance. At the same

moment there was a shot from the shore followed by loud yelling, and the girl turned to see her father and

Virginia and Sing were compelled to narrate the adventure of the afternoon a dozen times. The Chinaman

was at a loss to understand what had deterred the pirates at the very threshold of victory. Von Horn thought

that they had seen the reinforcements embarking from the shore, but Sing explained that that was impossible

since the Ithaca had been directly between them and the point at which the returning crew had entered the

Virginia was positive that her fusillade had frightened them into a hasty retreat, but again Sing discouraged

any such idea when he pointed to the fact that another instant would have carried the prahu close to the

The old Chinaman was positive that the pirates had some ulterior motive for simulating defeat, and his long

years of experience upon pirate infested waters gave weight to his opinion. The weak spot in his argument

was his inability to suggest a reasonable motive. And so it was that for a long time they were left to futile

conjecture as to the action that had saved them from a bloody encounter with these bloodthirsty sea wolves.

For a week the men were busy constructing the new camp, but never again was Virginia left without a

sufficient guard for her protection. Von Horn was always needed at the work, for to him had fallen the entire

direction of matters of importance that were at all of a practical nature. Professor Maxon wished to watch the

building of the houses and the stockade, that he might offer such suggestions as he thought necessary, and

She had been shocked at his apathy at the time of the pirate attack, and chagrined that it should have been

necessary for von Horn to have insisted upon a proper guard being left with her thereafter.

The nearer the approach of the time when he might enter again upon those experiments which had now been

neglected for the better part of a year the more self absorbed and moody became the professor. At times he

was scarcely civil to those about him, and never now did he have a pleasant word or a caress for the daughter

It often seemed to Virginia when she caught her father's eyes upon her that there was a gleam of dislike in

them, as though he would have been glad to have been rid of her that she might not in any way embarrass or

The camp was at last completed, and on a Saturday afternoon all the heavier articles from the ship had been

transported to it. On the following Monday the balance of the goods was to be sent on shore and the party

Late Sunday afternoon a small native boat was seen rounding the point at the harbor's southern extremity, and

after a few minutes it drew alongside the Ithaca. There were but three men in ittwo Dyaks and a Malay.

The latter was a tall, well built man of middle age, of a sullen and degraded countenance. His garmenture was

that of the ordinary Malay boatman, but there was that in his mien and his attitude toward his companions

In answer to von Horn's hail the man asked if he might come aboard and trade; but once on the deck it

developed that he had not brought nothing wherewith to trade. He seemed not the slightest disconcerted by

this discovery, stating that he would bring such articles as they wished when he had learned what their

The ubiquitous Sing was on hand during the interview, but from his expressionless face none might guess

what was passing through the tortuous channels of his Oriental mind. The Malay had been aboard nearly half

an hour talking with von Horn when the mate, Bududreen, came on deck, and it was Sing alone who noted

The Chinaman also saw the gleam that shot into the visitor's eye as Virginia emerged from the cabin, but by

no word or voluntary outward sign did the man indicate that he had even noticed her. Shortly afterward he

left, promising to return with provisions the following day. But it was to be months before they again saw

That evening as Sing was serving Virginia's supper he asked her if she had recognized their visitor of the

"Sh!" admonished the celestial. "No talkee so strong, wallee have ear all same labbit."

"What do you mean, Sing?" asked the girl in a low voice. "How perfectly weird and mysterious you are. Why

you make the cold chills run up my spine," she ended, laughing. But Sing did not return her smile as was his

"You no lememba tallee Lajah stand up wavee lite clothee in plilate boat, ah?" he urged.

"Oh, Sing," she cried, "I do indeed! But unless you had reminded me I should never have thought to connect

"Lookeelike! Ugh, they all samee one man. Sing know. You lookee out, Linee," which was the closest that

"Don't you bee too damee sure 'bout lat, Linee," was Sing's inelegant but convincing reply, as he turned

The following morning the party, with the exception of three Malays who were left to guard the Ithaca, set

out for the new camp. The journey was up the bed of the small stream which emptied into the harbor, so that

although fifteen men had passed back and forth through the jungle from the beach to the camp every day for

two weeks, there was no sign that human foot had ever crossed the narrow strip of sand that lay between the

The gravel bottom of the rivulet made fairly good walking, and as Virginia was borne in a litter between two

powerful lascars it was not even necessary that she wet her feet in the ascent of the stream to the camp. The

distance was short, the center of the camp being but a mile from the harbor, and less than half a mile from the

opposite shore of the island which was but two miles at its greatest breadth, and two and a quarter at its

At the camp Virginia found that a neat clearing had been made upon a little tableland, a palisade built about

it, and divided into three parts; the most northerly of which contained a small house for herself and her father,

another for von Horn, and a common cooking and eating house over which Sing was to preside.

The enclosure at the far end of the palisade was for the Malay and lascar crew and there also were quarters

for Bududreen and the Malay second mate. The center enclosure contained Professor Maxon's workshop.

This compartment of the enclosure Virginia was not invited to inspect, but as members of the crew carried in

the two great chests which the professor had left upon the Ithaca until the last moment, Virginia caught a

glimpse of the two buildings that had been erected within this central spacea small, square house which

was quite evidently her father's laboratory, and a long, low thatched shed divided into several compartments,

each containing a rude bunk. She wondered for whom they could be intended. Quarters for all the party had

already been arranged for elsewhere, nor, thought she, would her father wish to house any in such close

proximity to his workshop, where he would desire absolute quiet and freedom from interruption. The

discovery perplexed her not a little, but so changed were her relations with her father that she would not

As the two chests were being carried into the central campong, Sing, who was standing near Virginia, called

her attention to the fact that Bududreen was one of those who staggered beneath the weight of the heavier

"Bludleen, him mate. Why workee alsame lascar boy? Eh?" But Virginia could give no reason.

"I am afraid you don't like Bududreen, Sing," she said. "Has he ever harmed you in any way?"

"Him? No, him no hurt Sing. Sing poor," with which more or less enigmatical rejoinder the Chinaman

returned to his work. But he muttered much to himself the balance of the day, for Sing knew that a chest that

strained four men in the carrying could contain but one thing, and he knew that Bududreen was as wise in

For a couple of months the life of the little hidden camp went on peacefully and without exciting incident.

The Malay and lascar crew divided their time between watch duty on board the Ithaca, policing the camp, and

There was a small bay on the island's east coast, only a quarter of a mile from camp, in which oysters were

found, and one of the Ithaca's boats was brought around to this side of the island for fishing. Bududreen often

accompanied these expeditions, and on several occasions the lynxeyed Sing had seen him returning to camp

Professor Maxon scarcely ever left the central enclosure. For days and nights at a time Virginia never saw

him, his meals being passed in to him by Sing through a small trap door that had been cut in the partition wall

of the "court of mystery" as von Horn had christened the section of the camp devoted to the professor's

Von Horn himself was often with his employer as he enjoyed the latter's complete confidence, and owing to

his early medical training was well fitted to act as a competent assistant; but he was often barred from the

The two took long walks through the untouched jungle, exploring their little island, and never failing to find

some new and wonderful proof of Nature's creative power among its flora and fauna.

"What a marvellous thing is creation," exclaimed Virginia as she and von Horn paused one day to admire a

tropical bird of unusually brilliant plumage. "How insignificant is man's greatest achievement beside the least

"And yet," replied von Horn, "man shall find Nature's secret some day. What a glorious accomplishment for

him who first succeeds. Can you imagine a more glorious consummation of a man's life workyour father's,

"Dr. von Horn," she said, "pride has restrained me from asking what was evidently intended that I should not

know. For years my father has been interested in an endeavor to solve the mystery of lifethat he would

ever attempt to utilize the secret should he have been so fortunate as to discover it had never occurred to me. I

mean that he should try to usurp the functions of the Creator I could never have believed, but my knowledge

of him, coupled with what you have said, and the extreme lengths to which he has gone to maintain absolute

secrecy for his present experiments can only lead to one inference; and that, that his present work, if

successful, would have results that would not be countenanced by civilized society or government. Am I

Von Horn had attempted to sound the girl that he might, if possible, discover her attitude toward the work in

which her father and he were engaged. He had succeeded beyond his hopes, for he had not intended that she

should guess so much of the truth as she had. Should her interest in the work have proved favorable it had

been his intention to acquaint her fully with the marvellous success which already had attended their

experiments, and to explain their hopes and plans for the future, for he had seen how her father's attitude had

hurt her and hoped to profit himself by reposing in her the trust and confidence that her father denied her.

And so it was that her direct question left him floundering in a sea of embarrassment, for to tell her the truth

now would gain him no favor in her eyes, while it certainly would lay him open to the suspicion and distrust

"I cannot answer your question, Miss Maxon," he said, finally, "for your father's strictest injunction has been

that I divulge to no one the slightest happening within the court of mystery. Remember that I am in your

father's employ, and that no matter what my personal convictions may be regarding the work he has been

doing I may only act with loyalty to his lightest command while I remain upon his payroll. That you are

here," he added, "is my excuse for continuing my connection with certain things of which my conscience

The girl glanced at him quickly. She did not fully understand the motive for his final avowal, and a sudden

intuition kept her from questioning him. She had learned to look upon von Horn as a very pleasant

companion and a good friendshe was not quite certain that she would care for any change in their relations,

but his remark had sowed the seed of a new thought in her mind as he had intended that it should.

When von Horn returned to the court of mystery, he narrated to Professor Maxon the gist of his conversation

with Virginia, wishing to forestall anything which the girl might say to her father that would give him an

impression that von Horn had been talking more than he should. Professor Maxon listened to the narration in

silence. When von Horn had finished, he cautioned him against divulging to Virginia anything that took place

"She is only a child," he said, "and would not understand the importance of the work we are doing. All that

she would be able to see is the immediate moral effect of these experiments upon the subjects

themselvesshe would not look into the future and appreciate the immense advantage to mankind that must

accrue from a successful termination of our research. The future of the world will be assured when once we

have demonstrated the possibility of the chemical production of a perfect race."

"Levity, Doctor, is entirely out of place in the contemplation of the magnificent work I have already

accomplished," said the professor tartly. "I admit that Number One leaves much to be desiredmuch to be

desired; but Number Two shows a marked advance along certain lines, and I am sure that tomorrow will

divulge in experiment Number Three such strides as will forever silence any propensity toward scoffing

"Forgive me, Professor," von Horn hastened to urge. "I did not intend to deride the wonderful discoveries

which you have made, but it is only natural that we should both realize that Number One is not beautiful. To

Professor Maxon was mollified by this apology, and turned to resume his watch beside a large, coffinshaped

vat. For a while von Horn was silent. There was that upon his mind which he had wished to discuss with his

employer since months ago, but the moment had never arrived which seemed at all propitious, nor did it

appear likely ever to arrive. So the doctor decided to broach the subject now, as being psychologically as

"Your daughter is far from happy, Professor," he said, "nor do I feel that, surrounded as we are by

"It seemed to me that had I a closer relationship I might better assist in adding to her happiness and

safetyin short, Professor, I should like your permission to ask Virginia to marry me."

There had been no indication in von Horn's attitude toward the girl that he loved her. That she was beautiful

and intelligent could not be denied, and so it was small wonder that she might appeal strongly to any man, but

von Horn was quite evidently not of the marrying type. For years he had roved the world in search of

adventure and excitement. Just why he had left America and his high place in the navy he never had

divulged; nor why it was that for seven years he had not set his foot upon ground which lay beneath the

Sing Lee who stood just without the trap door through which he was about to pass Professor Maxon's evening

meal to him could not be blamed for overhearing the conversation, though it may have been culpable in him

in making no effort to divulge his presence, and possibly equally unpraiseworthy, as well as lacking in

As Professor Maxon eyed the man before replying to his abrupt request, von Horn noted a strange and sudden

light in the older man's eyesa something which he never before had seen there and which caused an

uncomfortable sensation to creep over hima manner of bristling that was akin either to fear or horror, von

Then the professor arose from his seat and came very close to the younger man, until his face was only a few

"Doctor," he whispered in a strange, tense voice, "you are mad. You do not know what you ask. Virginia is

not for such as you. Tell me that she does not know of your feelings toward her. Tell me that she does not

reciprocate your love. Tell me the truth, man." Professor Maxon seized von Horn roughly by both shoulders,

"I have never spoken to her of love, Professor," replied von Horn quietly, "nor do I know what her sentiments

toward me may be. Nor do I understand, sir, what objections you may have to meI am of a very old and

Professor Maxon released his hold upon his assistant, breathing a sigh of relief.

"I am glad," he said, "that it has gone no further, for it must not be. I have other, nobler aspirations for my

daughter. She must wed a perfect mannone such now exists. It remains for me to bring forth the ideal mate

for her nor is the time far distant. A few more weeks and we shall see such a being as I have long

dreamed." Again the queer light flickered for a moment in the once kindly and jovial eyes of the scientist.

Von Horn was horrified. He was a man of little sentiment. He could in cold blood have married this girl for

the wealth he knew that she would inherit; but the thought that she was to be united with such a THING

"Lord! It is horrible," and his mind pictured the fearful atrocity which was known as Number One.

Without a word he turned and left the campong. A moment later Sing's knock aroused Professor Maxon from

the reverie into which he had fallen, and he stepped to the trap door to receive his evening meal.

One day, about two weeks later, von Horn and the professor were occupied closely with their work in the

court of mystery. Developments were coming in riotous confusion. A recent startling discovery bade fare to

Von Horn's interest in the marvellous results that had been obtained was little short of the professor's but

he foresaw a very different outcome of it all, and by day never moved without a gun at either hip, and by

Sing Lee, the noonday meal having been disposed of, set forth with rod, string and bait to snare gulls upon

the beach. He moved quietly through the jungle, his sharp eyes and ears always alert for anything that might

savor of the unusual, and so it was that he saw the two men upon the beach, while they did not see him at all.

They were Bududreen and the same tall Malay whom Sing had seen twice beforeonce in splendid raiment

and commanding the pirate prahu, and again as a simple boatman come to the Ithaca to trade, but without the

The two squatted on the beach at the edge of the jungle a short distance above the point at which Sing had

been about to emerge when he discovered them, so that it was but the work of a moment or two for the

Chinaman to creep stealthily through the dense underbrush to a point directly above them and not three yards

from where they conversed in low tonesyet sufficiently loud that Sing missed not a word.

"I tell you, Bududreen, that it will be quite safe," the tall Malay was saying. "You yourself tell me that none

knows of the whereabouts of these white men, and if they do not return your word will be accepted as to their

fate. Your reward will be great if you bring the girl to me, and if you doubt the loyalty of any of your own

people a kris will silence them as effectually as it will silence the white men."

"It is not fear of the white men, oh, Rajah Muda Saffir, that deters me," said Bududreen, "but how shall I

know that after I have come to your country with the girl I shall not myself be set upon and silenced with a

golden kristhere be many that will be jealous of the great service I have done for the mighty rajah."

Muda Saffir knew perfectly well that Bududreen had but diplomatically expressed a fear as to his own royal

trustworthiness, but it did not anger him, since the charge was not a direct one; but what he did not know was

of the heavy chest and Bududreen's desire to win the price of the girl and yet be able to save for himself a

chance at the far greater fortune which he knew lay beneath that heavy oaken lid.

Both men had arisen now and were walking across the beach toward a small, native canoe in which Muda

Saffir had come to the meeting place. They were out of earshot before either spoke again, so that what further

passed between them Sing could not even guess, but he had heard enough to confirm the suspicions he had

He did not fish for gulls that day. Bududreen and Muda Saffir stood talking upon the beach, and the

Chinaman did not dare venture forth for fear they might suspect that he had overheard them. If old Sing Lee

knew his Malays, he was also wise enough to give them credit for knowing their Chinamen, so he waited

Professor Maxon and von Horn were standing over one of the six vats that were arranged in two rows down

the center of the laboratory. The professor had been more communicative and agreeable today than for some

time past, and their conversation had assumed more of the familiarity that had marked it during the first

"And what of these first who are so imperfect?" asked von Horn. "You cannot take them into civilization, nor

would it be right to leave them here upon this island. What will you do with them?"

"I have given the matter but little thought," he said at length. "They are but the accidents of my great work. It

is unfortunate that they are as they are, but without them I could have never reached the perfection that I am

sure we are to find here," and he tapped lovingly upon the heavy glass cover of the vat before which he stood.

"And this is but the beginning. There can be no more mistakes now, though I doubt if we can ever improve

upon that which is so rapidly developing here." Again he passed his long, slender hand caressingly over the

coffinlike vat at the head of which was a placard bearing the words, NUMBER THIRTEEN.

"But the others, Professor!" insisted von Horn. "We must decide. Already they have become a problem of no

small dimensions. Yesterday Number Five desired some plantains that I had given to Number Seven. I tried

to reason with him, but, as you know, he is mentally defective, and for answer he rushed at Number Seven to

tear the coveted morsel from him. The result was a battle royal that might have put to shame two Bengal

tigers. Twelve is tractable and intelligent. With his assistance and my bull whip I succeeded in separating

them before either was killed. Your greatest error was in striving at first for such physical perfection. You

have overdone it, with the result that the court of mystery is peopled by a dozen brutes of awful muscularity,

"They are as they are," replied the professor. "I shall do for them what I canwhen I am gone they must

Professor Maxon shuddered. Those three horrid days in the workshop at Ithaca flooded his memory with all

the gruesome details he had tried for so many months to forget. The haunting ghosts of the mental anguish

that had left him an altered manso altered that there were times when he had feared for his sanity!

"They are THINGS," interrupted von Horn. "They are not humanthey are not even beast. They are terrible,

soulless creatures. You have no right to permit them to live longer than to substantiate your theory. None but

us knows of their existenceno other need know of their passing. It must be done. They are a constant and

"I understand," he said. "The precedent once established, all must perish by its edicteven those which may

not be grotesque or bestialeven this perfect one," and he touched again the vat, "and thus you would rid

yourself of rival suitors. But no!" he went on in a high, trembling voice. "I shall not be led to thus

compromise myself, and be thwarted in my cherished plan. Be this one what he may he shall wed my

The man had raised himself upon his toes as he reached his climaxhis clenched hand was high above his

head his voice fairly thundered out the final sentence, and with the last word he brought his fist down upon

Von Horn was a brave man, but he shuddered at the maniacal ferocity of the older man, and shrank back. The

Sing Lee was late that night. In fact he did not return from his fruitless quest for gulls until well after dark,

nor would he vouchsafe any explanation of the consequent lateness of supper. Nor could he be found shortly

Not until the camp was wrapped in the quiet of slumber did Sing Lee returnstealthy and mysteriousto

creep under cover of a moonless night to the door of the workshop. How he gained entrance only Sing Lee

knows, but a moment later there was a muffled crash of broken glass within the laboratory, and the Chinaman

had slipped out, relocked the door, and scurried to his nearby shack. But there was no occasion for his

It was almost nine the following morning before Professor Maxon and von Horn entered the laboratory.

Scarcely had the older man passed the doorway than he drew up his hands in horrified consternation. Vat

Number Thirteen lay dashed to the floorthe glass cover was broken to a million piecesa sticky,

brownish substance covered the matting. Professor Maxon hid his face in his hands.

Professor Maxon mustered courage to raise his eyes from his hands, and there he beheld, seated in a far

corner of the room a handsome giant, physically perfect. The creature looked about him in a dazed,

uncomprehending manner. A great question was writ large upon his intelligent countenance. Professor

"Come," he said, and led him toward a smaller room off the main workshop. The giant followed docilely, his

eyes roving about the roomthe pitiful questioning still upon his handsome features. Von Horn turned

Virginia, deserted by all, even the faithful Sing, who, cheated of his sport on the preceding day, had again

gone to the beach to snare gulls, became restless of the enforced idleness and solitude. For a time she

wandered about the little compound which had been reserved for the whites, but tiring of this she decided to

extend her stroll beyond the palisade, a thing which she had never before done unless accompanied by von

"What danger can there be?" she thought. "We know that the island is uninhabited by others than ourselves,

and that there are no dangerous beasts. And, anyway, there is no one now who seems to care what becomes of

me, unlessunlessI wonder if he does care. I wonder if I care whether or not he cares. Oh, dear, I wish I

knew," and as she soliloquized she wandered past the little clearing and into the jungle that lay behind the

As von Horn and Professor Maxon talked together in the laboratory before the upsetting of vat Number

Thirteen, a grotesque and horrible creature had slunk from the low shed at the opposite side of the campong

until it had crouched at the flimsy door of the building in which the two men conversed. For a while it

listened intently, but when von Horn urged the necessity for dispatching certain "terrible, soulless creatures"

an expression of intermingled fear and hatred convulsed the hideous features, and like a great grizzly it turned

and lumbered awkwardly across the campong toward the easterly, or back wall of the enclosure.

Here it leaped futilely a half dozen times for the top of the palisade, and then trembling and chattering in rage

it ran back and forth along the base of the obstacle, just as a wild beast in captivity paces angrily before the

Finally it paused to look once more at the senseless wood that barred its escape, as though measuring the

distance to the top. Then the eyes roamed about the campong to rest at last upon the slanting roof of the

thatched shed which was its shelter. Presently a slow idea was born in the poor, malformed brain.

The creature approached the shed. He could just reach the saplings that formed the frame work of the roof.

Like a huge sloth he drew himself to the roof of the structure. From here he could see beyond the palisade,

and the wild freedom of the jungle called to him. He did not know what it was but in its leafy wall he

perceived many breaks and openings that offered concealment from the creatures who were plotting to take

Yet the wall was not fully six feet from him, and the top of it at least five feet above the top of the shed

those who had designed the campong had been careful to set this structure sufficiently far from the palisade

The creature glanced fearfully toward the workshop. He remembered the cruel bull whip that always

followed each new experiment on his part that did not coincide with the desires of his master, and as he

He tried to reach across the distance between the roof and the palisade, and in the attempt lost his balance and

nearly precipitated himself to the ground below. Cautiously he drew back, still looking about for some means

to cross the chasm. One of the saplings of the roof, protruding beyond the palm leaf thatch, caught his

attention. With a single wrench he tore it from its fastenings. Extending it toward the palisade he discovered

that it just spanned the gap, but he dared not attempt to cross upon its single slender strand.

Quickly he ripped off a half dozen other poles from the roof, and laying them side by side, formed a safe and

easy path to freedom. A moment more and he sat astride the top of the wall. Drawing the poles after him, he

dropped them one by one to the ground outside the campong. Then he lowered himself to liberty.

Gathering the saplings under one huge arm he ran, lumberingly, into the jungle. He would not leave evidence

of the havoc he had wrought; the fear of the bull whip was still strong upon him. The green foliage closed

about him and the peaceful jungle gave no sign of the horrid brute that roamed its shadowed mazes.

As von Horn stepped into the campong his quick eye perceived the havoc that had been wrought with the roof

at the east end of the shed. Quickly he crossed to the low structure. Within its compartments a number of

deformed monsters squatted upon their haunches, or lay prone upon the native mats that covered the floor.

As the man entered they looked furtively at the bull whip which trailed from his right hand, and then glanced

fearfully at one another as though questioning which was the malefactor on this occasion.

"Where is Number One?" he asked, directing his question toward a thing whose forehead gave greater

Von Horn turned and made a circuit of the campong. There was no sign of the missing one and no indication

of any other irregularity than the demolished portion of the roof. With an expression of mild concern upon his

Professor Maxon looked up in surprise, but before he had an opportunity to reply a woman's scream, shrill

Von Horn was the first to reach the campong of the whites. Professor Maxon was close behind him, and the

faces of both were white with apprehension. The enclosure was deserted. Not even Sing was there. Without a

word the two men sprang through the gateway and raced for the jungle in the direction from which that

Virginia Maxon, idling beneath the leafy shade of the tropical foliage, became presently aware that she had

wandered farther from the campong than she had intended. The day was sultry, and the heat, even in the

dense shade of the jungle, oppressive. Slowly she retraced her steps, her eyes upon the ground, her mind

absorbed in sad consideration of her father's increasing moodiness and eccentricity.

Possibly it was this very abstraction which deadened her senses to the near approach of another. At any rate

the girl's first intimation that she was not alone came when she raised her eyes to look full into the horrid

The sudden shock brought a single involuntary scream from her lips. And who can wonder! The thing thrust

so unexpectedly before her eyes was hideous in the extreme. A great mountain of deformed flesh clothed in

dirty, white cotton pajamas! Its face was of the ashen hue of a fresh corpse, while the white hair and pink

One eye was fully twice the diameter of the other, and an inch above the horizontal plane of its tiny mate. The

nose was but a gaping orifice above a deformed and twisted mouth. The thing was chinless, and its small,

foreheadless head surrounded its colossal body like a cannon ball on a hill top. One arm was at least twelve

inches longer than its mate, which was itself long in proportion to the torso, while the legs, similarly

mismated and terminating in huge, flat feet that protruded laterally, caused the thing to lurch fearfully from

A sudden grimace lighted the frightful face as the grotesque eyes fell upon this new creature. Number One

had never before seen a woman, but the sight of this one awoke in the unplumbed depths of his soulless

breast a great desire to lay his hands upon her. She was very beautiful. Number One wished to have her for

his very own; nor would it be a difficult matter, so fragile was she, to gather her up in those great, brute arms

and carry her deep into the jungle far out of hearing of the bullwhip man and the cold, frowning one who

was continually measuring and weighing Number One and his companions, the while he scrutinized them

with those strange, glittering eyes that frightened one even more than the cruel lash of the bull whip.

Number One lurched forward, his arms outstretched toward the horror stricken girl. Virginia tried to cry out

againshe tried to turn and run; but the horror of her impending fate and the terror that those awful features

The thing was almost upon her now. The mouth was wide in a hideous attempt to smile. The great hands

would grasp her in another secondand then there was a sudden crashing of the underbrush behind her, a

yellow, wrinkled face and a flying pigtail shot past her, and the brave old Sing Lee grappled with the mighty

The battle was shortshort and terrible. The valiant Chinaman sought the ashen throat of his antagonist, but

his wiry, sinewy muscles were as reeds beneath the force of that inhuman power that opposed them. Holding

the girl at arm's length in one hand, Number One tore the battling Chinaman from him with the other, and

lifting him bodily above his head, hurled him stunned and bleeding against the bole of a giant buttress tree.

Then lifting Virginia in his arms once more he dived into the impenetrable mazes of the jungle that lined the

As Professor Maxon and von Horn rushed from the workshop to their own campong, they neglected, in their

haste, to lock the door between, and for the first time since the camp was completed it stood unlatched and

The professor had been engaged in taking careful measurements of the head of his latest experiment, the

while he coached the young man in the first rudiments of spoken language, and now the subject of his labors

found himself suddenly deserted and alone. He had not yet been without the four walls of the workshop, as

the professor had wished to keep him from association with the grotesque results of his earlier experiments,

and now a natural curiosity tempted him to approach the door through which his creator and the man with the

He saw before him a great walled enclosure roofed by a lofty azure dome, and beyond the walls the tops of

green trees swaying gently in the soft breezes. His nostrils tasted the incense of fresh earth and growing

things. For the first time he felt the breath of Nature, free and unconfined, upon his brow.

He drew his giant frame to its full height and drank in the freedom and the sweetness of it all, filling his great

lungs to their fullest; and with the first taste he learned to hate the close and stuffy confines of his prison.

His virgin mind was filled with wonder at the wealth of new impressions which surged to his brain through

every sense. He longed for more, and the open gateway of the campong was a scarce needed invitation to

pass to the wide world beyond. With the free and easy tread of utter unconsciousness of self, he passed across

the enclosure and stepped out into the clearing which lay between the palisade and the jungle.

Ah, here was a still more beautiful world! The green leaves nodded to him, and at their invitation he came

and the jungle reached out its million arms to embrace him. Now before him, behind, on either side there was

naught but glorious green beauty shot with splashes of gorgeous color that made him gasp in wonderment.

Brilliant birds rose from amidst it all, skimming hither and thither above his headhe thought that the

flowers and the birds were the same, and when he reached out and plucked a blossom, tenderly, he wondered

that it did not flutter in his hand. On and on he walked, but slowly, for he must not miss a single sight in the

strange and wonderful place; and then, of a sudden, the quiet beauty of the scene was harshly broken by the

Number Thirteen was standing in a little open place in the jungle when the discordant note first fell upon his

ears, and as he turned his head in the direction of the sound he was startled at the hideous aspect of the thing

What a horrid creature! But on the same instant his eyes fell upon another borne in the arms of the terrible

one. This one was differentvery different, soft and beautiful and white. He wondered what it all meant,

for everything was strange and new to him; but when he saw the eyes of the lovely one upon him, and her

arms outstretched toward him, though he did not understand the words upon her lips, he knew that she was in

distress. Something told him that it was the ugly thing that carried her that was the author of her suffering.

Virginia Maxon had been half unconscious from fright when she suddenly saw a white man, clothed in

coarse, white, native pajamas, confronting her and the misshapen beast that was bearing her away to what

At the sight of the man her voice returned with returning hope, and she reached her arms toward him, calling

upon him to save her. Although he did not respond she thought that he understood for he sprang toward them

As before, when Sing had threatened to filch his new possession from him, Number One held the girl with

one hand while he met the attack of this new assailant with the other; but here was very different metal than

It is true that Number Thirteen knew nothing whatever of personal combat, but Number One had but little

advantage of him in the matter of experience, while the former was equipped with great natural intelligence

So it was that the awful giant found his single hand helpless to cope with the strength of his foeman, and in a

brief instant felt powerful fingers clutching at his throat. Still reluctant to surrender his hold upon his prize, he

beat futilely at the face of his enemy, but at last the agony of choking compelled him to drop the girl and

grapple madly with the man who choked him with one hand and rained mighty and merciless blows upon his

His captive sank to the ground, too weak from the effects of nervous shock to escape, and with horror filled

eyes watched the two who battled over her. She saw that her wouldbe rescuer was young and strong

featuredall together a very fine specimen of manhood; and to her great wonderment it was soon apparent

Both tore and struck and clawed and bit in the frenzy of mad, untutored strife, rolling about on the soft carpet

of the jungle almost noiselessly except for their heavy breathing and an occasional beastlike snarl from

Number One. For several minutes they fought thus until the younger man succeeded in getting both hands

upon the throat of his adversary, and then, choking relentlessly, he raised the brute with him from the ground

and rushed him fiercely backward against the stem of a tree. Again and again he hurled the monstrous thing

upon the unyielding wood, until at last it hung helpless and inert in his clutches, then he cast it from him, and

Here was a problem indeed. Now that he had won her, what was he to do with her? He was but an adult child,

with the brain and brawn of a man, and the ignorance and inexperience of the newborn. And so he acted as a

child acts, in imitation of what it has seen others do. The brute had been carrying the lovely creature,

therefore that must be the thing for him to do, and so he stooped and gathered Virginia Maxon in his great

She tried to tell him that she could walk after a moment's rest, but it was soon evident that he did not

understand her, as a puzzled expression came to his face and he did not put her down as she asked. Instead he

stood irresolute for a time, and then moved slowly through the jungle. By chance his direction was toward the

camp, and this fact so relieved the girl's mind that presently she was far from loath to remain quietly in his

After a moment she gained courage to look up into his face. She thought that she never had seen so

marvellously clean cut features, or a more high and noble countenance, and she wondered how it was that this

white man was upon the island and she not have known it. Possibly he was a new arrivalhis presence

unguessed even by her father. That he was neither English nor American was evident from the fact that he

could not understand her native tongue. Who could he be! What was he doing upon their island!

As she watched his face he suddenly turned his eyes down upon her, and as she looked hurriedly away she

was furious with herself as she felt a crimson flush mantle her cheek. The man only half sensed, in a vague

sort of way, the meaning of the tell tale color and the quickly averted eyes; but he became suddenly aware of

the pressure of her delicate body against his, as he had not been before. Now he kept his eyes upon her face

as he walked, and a new emotion filled his breast. He did not understand it, but it was very pleasant, and he

The scream that had startled von Horn and Professor Maxon led them along the trail toward the east coast of

the island, and about halfway of the distance they stumbled upon the dazed and bloody Sing just as he was on

"For God's sake, Sing, what is the matter?" cried von Horn. "Where is Miss Maxon?"

"Big blute, he catchem Linee. Tly kill Sing. Head hit tlee. No see any more. Wakee upall glone," moaned

Sing's quick eyes scanned the surrounding jungle, and in a moment, staggering to his feet, he cried, "Look

see, klick! Foot plint!" and ran, weak and reeling drunkenly, along the broad trail made by the giant creature

Von Horn and Professor Maxon followed closely in Sing's wake, the younger man horrified by the terrible

possibilities that obtruded themselves into his imagination despite his every effort to assure himself that no

harm could come to Virginia Maxon before they reached her. The girl's father had not spoken since they

discovered that she was missing from the campong, but his face was white and drawn; his eyes wide and

glassy as those of one whose mind is on the verge of madness from a great nervous shock.

The trail of the creature was bewilderingly erratic. A dozen paces straight through the underbrush, then a

sharp turn at right angles for no apparent reason, only to veer again suddenly in a new direction! Thus,

turning and twisting, the tortuous way led them toward the south end of the island, until Sing, who was in

Von Horn rushed forward to where the Chinaman was leaning over the body of Number One. Sure enough,

the great brute lay motionless, its horrid face even more hideous in death than in life, if it were possible. The

face was black, the tongue protruded, the skin was bruised from the heavy fists of his assailant and the thick

Professor Maxon leaned over von Horn's shoulder. "Ah, poor Number One," he sighed, "that you should have

Von Horn looked at him, a tinge of compassion in his rather hard face. It touched the man that his employer

was at last shocked from the obsession of his work to a realization of the love and duty he owed his daughter;

"Though there are twelve more," continued Professor Maxon, "you were my first born son and I loved you

"My God, Professor!" he cried. "Are you mad? Can you call this thing `child' and mourn over it when you do

Professor Maxon looked up sadly. "You do not understand, Dr. von Horn," he replied coldly, "and you will

oblige me, in the future, by not again referring to the offspring of my labors as `things.'"

With an ugly look upon his face von Horn turned his back upon the older manwhat little feeling of loyalty

and affection he had ever felt for him gone forever. Sing was looking about for evidences of the cause of

Number One's death and the probable direction in which Virginia Maxon had disappeared.

"What on earth could have killed this enormous brute, Sing? Have you any idea?" asked von Horn.

"No savvy," he replied. "Blig flight. Look see," and he pointed to the torn and trampled turf, the broken

bushes, and to one or two small trees that had been snapped off by the impact of the two mighty bodies that

"This way," cried Sing presently, and started off once more into the brush, but this time in a northwesterly

In silence the three men followed the new trail, all puzzled beyond measure to account for the death of

Number One at the hands of what must have been a creature of superhuman strength. What could it have

been! It was impossible that any of the Malays or lascars could have done the thing, and there were no other

creatures, brute or human, upon the island large enough to have coped even for an instant with the ferocious

brutality of the dead monster, except von Horn's brain came to a sudden halt at the thought. Could it be?

There seemed no other explanation. Virginia Maxon had been rescued from one soulless monstrosity to fall

Others then must have escaped from the campong. Von Horn loosened his guns in their holsters, and took a

fresh grip upon his bull whip as he urged Sing forward upon the trail. He wondered which one it was, but not

once did it occur to him that the latest result of Professor Maxon's experiments could be the rescuer of

Virginia Maxon. In his mind he could see only the repulsive features of one of the others.

Quite unexpectedly they came upon the two, and with a shout von Horn leaped forward, his bull whip

upraised. Number Thirteen turned in surprise at the cry, and sensing a new danger for her who lay in his

arms, he set her gently upon the ground behind him and advanced to meet his assailant.

"Out of the way, youmonstrosity," cried von Horn. "If you have harmed Miss Maxon I'll put a bullet in

Number Thirteen did not understand the words that the other addressed to him but he interpreted the man's

actions as menacing, not to himself, but to the creature he now considered his particular charge; and so he

met the advancing man, more to keep him from the girl than to offer him bodily injury for he recognized him

Von Horn, possibly intentionally, misinterpreted the other's motive, and raising his bull whip struck Number

Thirteen a vicious cut across the face, at the same time levelling his revolver point blank at the broad beast.

But before ever he could pull the trigger an avalanche of muscle was upon him, and he went down to the

His revolver exploded harmlessly in the air, and then another hand wrenched it from him and hurled it far

into the underbrush. Number Thirteen knew nothing of the danger of firearms, but the noise had startled him

and his experience with the stinging cut of the bull whip convinced him that this other was some sort of

Virginia Maxon looked on in horror as she realized that her rescuer was quickly choking Dr. von Horn to

death. With a little cry she sprang to her feet and ran toward them, just as her father emerged from the

underbrush through which he had been struggling in the trail of the agile Chinaman and von Horn. Placing

her hand upon the great wrist of the giant she tried to drag his fingers from von Horn's throat, pleading

meanwhile with both voice and eyes for the life of the man she thought loved her.

Again Number Thirteen translated the intent without understanding the words, and releasing von Horn

permitted him to rise. With a bound he was upon his feet and at the same instant brought his other gun from

his side and levelled it upon the man who had released him; but as his finger tightened upon the trigger

Virginia Maxon sprang between them and grasping von Horn's wrist deflected the muzzle of the gun just as

the cartridge exploded. Simultaneously Professor Maxon sprang from his grasp and hurled him back with the

"Fool!" he cried. "What would you do? Kill," and then of a sudden he realized his daughter's presence and

"I am surprised at you, Dr. von Horn," he continued in a more level voice. "You must indeed have forgotten

yourself to thus attack a stranger upon our island until you know whether he be friend or foe. Come! Escort

my daughter to the camp, while I make the proper apologies to this gentleman." As he saw that both Virginia

and von Horn hesitated, he repeated his command in a peremptory tone, adding; "Quick, now; do as I bid

The moment had given von Horn an opportunity to regain his selfcontrol, and realizing as well as did his

employer, but from another motive, the necessity of keeping the truth from the girl, he took her arm and led

her gently from the scene. At Professor Maxon's direction Sing accompanied them.

Now in Number Thirteen's brief career he had known no other authority than Professor Maxon's, and so it

was that when his master laid a hand upon his wrist he remained beside him while another walked away with

Until after dark the professor kept the young man hidden in the jungle, and then, safe from detection, led him

On their return to camp after her rescue Virginia talked a great deal to von Horn about the young giant who

had rescued her, until the man feared that she was more interested in him than seemed good for his own

He had now cast from him the last vestige of his loyalty for his employer, and thus freed had determined to

use every means within his power to win Professor Maxon's daughter, and with her the heritage of wealth

which he knew would be hers should her father, through some unforeseen mishap, meet death before he could

return to civilization and alter his will, a contingency which von Horn knew he might have to consider should

he marry the girl against her father's wishes, and thus thwart the crazed man's mad, but no less dear project.

He realized that first he must let the girl fully understand the grave peril in which she stood, and turn her hope

of protection from her father to himself. He imagined that the initial step in undermining Virginia's

confidence in her father would be to narrate every detail of the weird experiments which Professor Maxon

"Where could that horrid creature have come from that set upon me in the jungle and nearly killed poor

For a moment von Horn was silent, in well simulated hesitancy to reply to her query.

"I cannot tell you, Miss Maxon," he said sadly, "how much I should hate to be the one to ignore your father's

commands, and enlighten you upon this and other subjects which lie nearer to your personal welfare than you

can possibly guess; but I feel that after the horrors of this day duty demands that I must lay all before

youyou cannot again be exposed to the horrors from which you were rescued only by a miracle."

"I cannot imagine what you hint at, Dr. von Horn," said Virginia, "but if to explain to me will necessitate

"You do not understand," broke in the man, "you cannot guess the horrors that I have seen upon this island,

or the worse horrors that are to come. Could you dream of what lies in store for you, you would seek death

rather than face the future. I have been loyal to your father, Virginia, but were you not blind, or indifferent,

you would long since have seen that your welfare means more to me than my loyalty to him more to me

"You asked where the creature came from that attacked you today. I shall tell you. It is one of a dozen

similarly hideous things that your father has created in his mad desire to solve the problem of life. He has

"Do you mean to say that my father in a mad attempt to usurp the functions of God created that awful thing?"

she asked in a low, faint voice, "and that there are others like it upon the island?"

"In the campong next to yours there are a dozen others," replied von Horn, "nor would it be easy to say which

is the most hideous and repulsive. They are grotesque caricatures of humanitywithout soul and almost

"God!" murmured the girl, burying her face in her hands, "he has gone mad; he has gone mad."

"I truly believe that he is mad," said von Horn, "nor could you doubt it for a moment were I to tell you the

"The worst!" exclaimed the girl. "What could be worse than that which you already have divulged? Oh, how

"There is much worse than I have told you, Virginia. So much worse that I can scarce force my lips to frame

the words, but you must be told. I would be more criminally liable than your father were I to keep it from

you, for my brain, at least, is not crazed. Virginia, you have in your mind a picture of the hideous thing that

Von Horn grasped her arm gently as he went on, as though to support and protect her during the shock that he

"Virginia," he said in a very low voice, "it is your father's intention to wed you to one of his creatures."

"It is not true!" she exclaimed. "It is not true. Oh, Dr. von Horn how could you tell me such a cruel and

"As God is my judge, Virginia," and the man reverently uncovered as he spoke, "it is the truth. Your father

told me it in so many words when I asked his permission to pay court to you myselfyou are to marry

For a moment Virginia looked straight into his eyes as though to read his inmost soul.

"Let me have time to consider it, Doctor," she replied. "I do not know that I care for you in that way at all."

"Think of Number Thirteen," he suggested. "It should not be difficult to decide."

"I could not marry you simply to escape a worse fate," replied the girl. "I am not that cowardlybut let me

"One can never tell," replied von Horn, "what strange, new vagaries may enter a crazed mind to dictate this

"The Ithaca would bear us to Singapore, and when we returned you would be under my legal protection and

"I shall think about it from every angle," she answered sadly, "and now good night, my dear friend," and with

For the next month Professor Maxon was busy educating Number Thirteen. He found the young man

intelligent far beyond his most sanguine hopes, so that the progress made was little short of uncanny.

Von Horn during this time continued to urge upon Virginia the necessity for a prompt and favorable decision

in the matter of his proposal; but when it came time to face the issue squarely the girl found it impossible to

accede to his requestshe thought that she loved him, but somehow she dared not say the word that would

Bududreen, the Malay mate was equally harassed by conflicting desires, though of a different nature, or he

had his eye upon the main chance that was represented to him by the great chest, and also upon the lesser

reward which awaited him upon delivery of the girl to Rajah Muda Saffir. The fact that he could find no safe

means for accomplishing both these ends simultaneously was all that had protected either from his

The presence of the uncanny creatures of the court of mystery had become known to the Malay and he used

this knowledge as an argument to foment discord and mutiny in the ignorant and superstitious crew under his

command. By boring a hole in the partition wall separating their campong from the inner one he had

disclosed to the horrified view of his men the fearsome brutes harbored so close to them. The mate, of course,

had no suspicion of the true origin of these monsters, but his knowledge of the fact that they had not been

upon the island when the Ithaca arrived and that it would have been impossible for them to have landed and

reached the camp without having been seen by himself or some member of his company, was sufficient

evidence to warrant him in attributing their presence to some supernatural and malignant power.

This explanation the crew embraced willingly, and with it Bududreen's suggestion that Professor Maxon had

power to transform them all into similar atrocities. The ball once started gained size and momentum as it

progressed. The professor's ofttimes strange expression was attributed to an evil eye, and every ailment

suffered by any member of the crew was blamed upon their employer's Satanic influence. There was but one

escape from the horrors of such a cursethe death of its author; and when Bududreen discovered that they

had reached this point, and were even discussing the method of procedure, he added all that was needed to the

dangerously smouldering embers of bloody mutiny by explaining that should anything happen to the white

men he would become sole owner of their belongings, including the heavy chest, and that the reward of each

Von Horn was really the only stumbling block in Bududreen's path. With the natural cowardice of the Malay

he feared this masterful American who never moved without a brace of guns slung about his hips; and it was

at just this psychological moment that the doctor played into the hands of his subordinate, much to the latter's

Von Horn had finally despaired of winning Virginia by peaceful court, and had about decided to resort to

force when he was precipitately confirmed in his decision by a conversation with the girl's father.

He and the professor were talking in the workshop of the remarkable progress of Number Thirteen toward a

complete mastery of English and the ways and manners of society, in which von Horn had been assisting his

employer to train the young giant. The breach between the latter and von Horn had been patched over by

Professor Maxon's explanations to Number Thirteen as soon as the young man was able to comprehendin

the meantime it had been necessary to keep von Horn out of the workshop except when the giant was

Von Horn had been particularly anxious, for the furtherance of certain plans he had in mind, to effect a

reconciliation with Number Thirteen, to reach a basis of friendship with the young man, and had left no stone

unturned to accomplish this result. To this end he had spent considerable time with Number Thirteen,

"He is progressing splendidly, Doctor," Professor Maxon had said. "It will be but a matter of a day or so

when I can introduce him to Virginia, but we must be careful that she has no inkling of his origin until mutual

"I should prefer that they mated voluntarily," replied the professor, the strange gleam leaping to his eyes at

the suggestion of possible antagonism to his cherished plan, "but if not, then they shall be compelled by the

"You will wait for the final consummation of your desires until you return with them to civilization, I

"And why?" returned the professor. "I can wed them here myselfit would be the surer wayyes, that is

It was this determination on the part of Professor Maxon that decided von Horn to act at once. Further, it lent

Shortly after their talk the older man left the workshop, and von Horn took the opportunity to inaugurate the

second move of his campaign. Number Thirteen was sitting near a window which let upon the inner court,

"You are getting along nicely, Jack," he said kindly, looking over the other's shoulder and using the name

which had been adopted at his suggestion to lend a more human tone to their relations with the nameless man.

"Yes," replied the other, looking up with a smile. "Professor Maxon says that in another day or two I may

come and live in his own house, and again meet his beautiful daughter. It seems almost too good to be true

that I shall actually live under the same roof with her and see her every daysit at the same table with

herand walk with her among the beautiful trees and flowers that witnessed our first meeting. I wonder if

she will remember me. I wonder if she will be as glad to see me again as I shall be to see her."

"Jack," said von Horn, sadly, "I am afraid there is a terrible and disappointing awakening for you. It grieves

me that it should be so, but it seems only fair to tell you, what Professor Maxon either does not know or has

forgotten, that his daughter will not look with pleasure upon you when she learns your origin.

"You are not as other men. You are but the accident of a laboratory experiment. You have no soul, and the

soul is all that raises man above the beasts. Jack, poor boy, you are not a human beingyou are not even a

beast. The world, and Miss Maxon is of the world, will look upon you as a terrible creature to be shunned

a horrible monstrosity far lower in the scale of creation than the lowest order of brutes.

"Look," and the man pointed through the window toward the group of hideous things that wandered aimlessly

about the court of mystery. "You are of the same breed as those, you differ from them only in the symmetry

of your face and features, and the superior development of your brain. There is no place in the world for

"I am sorry that it is so. I am sorry that I should have to be the one to tell you; but it is better that you know it

now from a friend than that you meet the bitter truth when you least expected it, and possibly from the lips of

As von Horn spoke the expression on the young man's face became more and more hopeless, and when he

had ceased he dropped his head into his open palms, sitting quiet and motionless as a carven statue. No sob

shook his great frame, there was no outward indication of the terrible grief that racked him inwardlyonly in

The older man could not repress a cold smileit had had more effect than he had hoped.

"Don't take it too hard, my boy," he continued. "The world is wide. It would be easy to find a thousand places

where your antecedents would be neither known nor questioned. You might be very happy elsewhere and

there a hundred thousand girls as beautiful and sweet as Virginia Maxonremember that you have never

"Why did he ever bring me into the world?" exclaimed the young man suddenly. "It was wickedwicked

"I agree with you," said von Horn quickly, seeing another possibility that would make his future plans

immeasurably easier. "It was wicked, and it is still more wicked to continue the work and bring still other

unfortunate creatures into the world to be the butt and plaything of cruel fate."

Von Horn was quite satisfied with the turn events had taken. He shrugged his shoulders and turned on his

"If he had wronged me as he has you, and those others," with a gesture toward the court of mystery, "I should

not be long in reaching a decision." And with that he passed out, leaving the door unlatched.

Von Horn went straight to the south campong and sought out Bududreen. Motioning the Malay to follow him

they walked across the clearing and entered the jungle out of sight and hearing of the camp. Sing, hanging

clothes in the north end of the clearing saw them depart, and wondered a little.

"Bududreen," said von Horn, when the two had reached a safe distance from the enclosures, "there is no need

of mincing matterssomething must be done at once. I do not know how much you know of the work that

Professor Maxon has been engaged in since we reached this island; but it has been hellish enough and it must

"Professor Maxon intends to wed one of these to his daughter," von Horn continued. "She loves me and we

wish to escapecan I rely on you and your men to aid us? There is a chest in the workshop which we must

take along too, and I can assure you that you all will be well rewarded for your work. We intend merely to

"It will be perilous work, Captain," he answered. "We should all be hanged were we caught."

"There will be no danger of that, Bududreen, for there will be no one to divulge our secret."

"There will be the Professor Maxon," urged the Malay. "Some day he will escape from the island, and then

"He will never escape," replied von Horn, "his own creatures will see to that. They are already commencing

to realize the horrible crime he has committed against them, and when once they are fully aroused there will

be no safety for any of us. If you wish to leave the island at all it will be best for you to accept my proposal

and leave while your head yet remains upon your shoulders. Were we to suggest to the professor that he leave

now he would not only refuse but he would take steps to make it impossible for any of us to leave, even to

sinking the Ithaca. The man is madquite madBududreen, and we cannot longer jeopardize our own

The Malay was thinking fast, and could von Horn have guessed what thoughts raced through the tortuous

channels of that semibarbarous brain he would have wished himself safely housed in the American prison

"Tonight," replied von Horn, and together they matured their plans. An hour later the second mate with six

men disappeared into the jungle toward the harbor. They, with the three on watch, were to get the vessel in

After the evening meal von Horn sat on the verandah with Virginia Maxon until the Professor came from the

workshop to retire for the night. As he passed them he stopped for a word with von Horn, taking him aside

"Have you noticed anything peculiar in the actions of Thirteen?" asked the older man. "He was sullen and

morose this evening, and at times there was a strange, wild light in his eyes as he looked at me. Can it be

possible that, after all, his brain is defective? It would be terrible. My work would have gone for naught, for I

"I will go and have a talk with him later," said von Horn, "so if you hear us moving about in the workshop, or

even out here in the campong think nothing of it. I may take him for a long walk. It is possible that the hard

study and close confinement to that little building have been too severe upon his brain and nerves. A long

"Splendidsplendid," replied the professor. "You may be quite right. Do it by all means, my dear doctor,"

and there was a touch of the old, friendly, sane tone which had been so long missing, that almost caused von

Horn to feel a trace of compunction for the hideous act of disloyalty that he was on the verge of perpetrating.

As Professor Maxon entered the house von Horn returned to Virginia and suggested that they take a short

walk outside the campong before retiring. The girl readily acquiesced to the plan, and a moment later found

them strolling through the clearing toward the southern end of the camp. In the dark shadows of the gateway

leading to the men's enclosure a figure crouched. The girl did not see it, but as they came opposite it von

The Rajah Muda Saffir, tiring of the excuses and delays which Bududreen interposed to postpone the

fulfillment of his agreement with the former, whereby he was to deliver into the hands of the rajah a certain

beautiful maiden, decided at last to act upon his own initiative. The truth of the matter was that he had come

to suspect the motives of the first mate of the Ithaca, and not knowing of the great chest attributed them to

So it was that as the second mate of the Ithaca with his six men waded down the bed of the little stream

toward the harbor and the ship, a fleet of ten war prahus manned by over five hundred fierce Dyaks and

commanded by Muda Saffir himself, pulled cautiously into the little cove upon the opposite side of the

At the same moment von Horn was leading Virginia Maxon farther and farther from the north campong

where resistance, if there was to be any, would be most likely to occur. At his superior's cough Bududreen

had signalled silently to the men within the enclosure, and a moment later six savage lascars crept stealthily

The moment that von Horn and the girl were entirely concealed by the darkness, the seven moved cautiously

along the shadow of the palisade toward the north campong. There was murder in the cowardly hearts of

several of them, and stupidity and lust in the hearts of all. There was no single one who would not betray his

best friend for a handful of silver, nor any but was inwardly hoping and scheming to the end that he might

It was such a pack of scoundrels that Bududreen led toward the north campong to bear away the treasure. In

the breast of the leader was the hope that he had planted enough of superstitious terror in their hearts to make

the sight of the supposed author of their imagined wrongs sufficient provocation for his murder; for

Bududreen was too sly to give the order for the killing of a white manthe arm of the white man's law was

too longbut he felt that he would rest easier were he to leave the island with the knowledge that only a

While these events were transpiring Number Thirteen was pacing restlessly back and forth the length of the

workshop. But a short time before he had had his authorthe author of his miserywithin the four walls of

his prison, and yet he had not wreaked the vengeance that was in his heart. Twice he had been on the point of

springing upon the man, but both times the other's eyes had met his and something which he was not able to

comprehend had stayed him. Now that the other had gone and he was alone contemplation of the hideous

The thought that he had been made by this manmade in the semblance of a human being, yet denied by the

manner of his creation a place among the lowest of Nature's creaturesfilled him with fury, but it was not

this thought that drove him to the verge of madness. It was the knowledge, suggested by von Horn, that

Virginia Maxon would look upon him in horror, as a grotesque and loathsome monstrosity.

He had no standard and no experience whereby he might classify his sentiments toward this wonderful

creature. All he knew was that his life would be complete could he be near her alwayssee her and speak

with her daily. He had thought of her almost constantly since those short, delicious moments that he had held

her in his arms. Again and again he experienced in retrospection the exquisite thrill that had run through

every fiber of his being at the sight of her averted eyes and flushed face. And the more he let his mind dwell

upon the wonderful happiness that was denied him because of his origin, the greater became his wrath against

It was now quite dark without. The door leading to Professor Maxon's campong, left unlatched earlier in the

evening by von Horn for sinister motives of his own, was still unbarred through a fatal coincidence of

Number Thirteen approached this door. He laid his hand upon the knob. A moment later he was moving

noiselessly across the campong toward the house in which Professor Maxon lay peacefully sleeping; while at

the south gate Bududreen and his six cutthroats crept cautiously within and slunk in the dense shadows of the

palisade toward the workshop where lay the heavy chest of their desire. At the same instant Muda Saffir with

fifty of his headhunting Dyaks emerged from the jungle east of the camp, bent on discovering the

whereabouts of the girl the Malay sought and bearing her away to his savage court far within the jungle

Number Thirteen reached the verandah of the house and peered through the window into the living room,

where an oil lamp, turned low, dimly lighted the interior, which he saw was unoccupied. Going to the door he

pushed it open and entered the apartment. All was still within. He listened intently for some slight sound

which might lead him to the victim he sought, or warn him from the apartment of the girl or that of von

Hornhis business was with Professor Maxon. He did not wish to disturb the others whom he believed to be

Cautiously he approached one of the four doors which opened from the living room. Gently he turned the

knob and pushed the door ajar. The interior of the apartment beyond was in inky darkness, but Number

Thirteen's greatest fear was that he might have stumbled upon the sleeping room of Virginia Maxon, and that

if she were to discover him there, not only would she be frightened, but her cries would alarm the other

The thought of the horror that his presence would arouse within her, the knowledge that she would look upon

him as a terrifying monstrosity, added new fuel to the fires of hate that raged in his bosom against the man

who had created him. With clenched fists, and tight set jaws the great, soulless giant moved across the dark

chamber with the stealthy noiselessness of a tiger. Feeling before him with hands and feet he made the circuit

Scarce breathing he leaned over and groped across the covers with his fingers in search of his preythe bed

was empty. With the discovery came a sudden nervous reaction that sent him into a cold sweat. Weakly, he

seated himself upon the edge of the bed. Had his fingers found the throat of Professor Maxon beneath the

coverlet they would never have released their hold until life had forever left the body of the scientist, but now

that the highest tide of the young man's hatred had come and gone he found himself for the first time assailed

Suddenly he recalled the fact that the man whose life he sought was the father of the beautiful creature he

adored. Perhaps she loved him and would be unhappy were he taken away from her. Number Thirteen did not

know, of course, but the idea obtruded itself, and had sufficient weight to cause him to remain seated upon

the edge of the bed meditating upon the act he contemplated. He had by no means given up the idea of killing

Professor Maxon, but now there were doubts and obstacles which had not been manifest before.

His standards of right and wrong were but half formed, from the brief attempts of Professor Maxon and von

Horn to inculcate proper moral perceptions in a mind entirely devoid of hereditary inclinations toward either

good or bad, but he realized one thing most perfectlythat to be a soulless thing was to be damned in the

estimation of Virginia Maxon, and it now occurred to him that to kill her father would be the act of a soulless

being. It was this thought more than another that caused him to pause in the pursuit of his revenge, since he

knew that the act he contemplated would brand him the very thing he was, yet wished not to be.

At length, however, he slowly comprehended that no act of his would change the hideous fact of his origin;

that nothing would make him acceptable in her eyes, and with a shake of his head he arose and stepped

In the workshop Bududreen and his men had easily located the chest. Dragging it into the north campong the

Malay was about to congratulate himself upon the ease with which the theft had been accomplished when one

of his fellows declared his intention of going to the house for the purpose of dispatching Professor Maxon,

lest the influence of his evil eye should overtake them with some terrible curse when the loss of the chest

While this met fully with Bududreen's plans he urged the man against any such act that he might have

witnesses to prove that he not only had no hand in the crime, but had exerted his authority to prevent it; but

when two of the men separated themselves from the party and crept toward the bungalow no force was

The moon had risen now, so that from the dark shadows of the palisade Muda Saffir and his savages watched

the party with Bududreen squatting about the heavy chest, and saw the two who crept toward the house. To

Muda Saffir's evil mind there was but one explanation. Bududreen had discovered a rich treasure, and having

Rajah Muda Saffir was furious. In subdued whispers he sent a half dozen of his Dyaks back beneath the

shadow of the palisade to the opposite side of the bungalow where they were to enter the building, killing all

within except the girl, whom they were to carry straight to the beach and the war prahus.

Then with the balance of his horde he crept alone in the darkness until opposite Bududreen and the watchers

about the chest. Just as the two who crept toward the bungalow reached it, Muda Saffir gave the word for the

attack upon the Malays and lascars who guarded the treasure. With savage yells they dashed upon the

unsuspecting men. Parangs and spears glistened in the moonlight. There was a brief and bloody encounter,

for the cowardly Bududreen and his equally cowardly crew had had no alternative but to fight, so suddenly

In a moment the savage Borneo head hunters had added five grisly trophies to their record. Bududreen and

As Number Thirteen arose to continue his search for Professor Maxon his quick ear caught the shuffling of

bare feet upon the verandah. As he paused to listen there broke suddenly upon the still night the hideous war

cries of the Dyaks, and the screams and shrieks of their frightened victims in the campong without. Almost

simultaneously Professor Maxon and Sing rushed into the living room to ascertain the cause of the wild

alarm, while at the same instant Bududreen's assassins sprang through the door with upraised krisses, to be

almost immediately followed by Muda Saffir's six Dyaks brandishing their long spears and wicked parangs.

In an instant the little room was filled with howling, fighting men. The Dyaks, whose orders as well as

inclinations incited them to a general massacre, fell first upon Bududreen's lascars who, cornered in the small

room, fought like demons for their lives, so that when the Dyaks had overcome them two of their own

Sing and Professor Maxon stood in the doorway to the professor's room gazing upon the scene of carnage in

surprise and consternation. The scientist was unarmed, but Sing held a long, wicked looking Colt in readiness

for any contingency. It was evident the celestial was no stranger to the use of his deadly weapon, nor to the

moments of extreme and sudden peril which demanded its use, for he seemed no more perturbed than had he

As Number Thirteen watched the two men from the dark shadows of the room in which he stood, he saw that

both were calmthe Chinaman with the calmness of perfect courage, the other through lack of full

understanding of the grave danger which menaced him. In the eyes of the latter shone a strange gleamit

was the wild light of insanity that the sudden nervous shock of the attack had brought to a premature

Now the four remaining Dyaks were advancing upon the two men. Sing levelled his revolver and fired at the

foremost, and at the same instant Professor Maxon, with a shrill, maniacal scream, launched himself full upon

a second. Number Thirteen saw the blood spurt from a superficial wound in the shoulder of the fellow who

received Sing's bullet, but except for eliciting a howl of rage the missile had no immediate effect. Then Sing

pulled the trigger again and again, but the cylinder would not revolve and the hammer fell futilely upon the

empty cartridge. As two of the head hunters closed upon him the brave Chinaman clubbed his weapon and

The man with whom Professor Maxon had grappled had no opportunity to use his weapons for the crazed

man held him close with one encircling arm while he tore and struck at him with his free hand. The fourth

Dyak danced around the two with raised parang watching for an opening that he might deliver a silencing

The great odds against the two mentheir bravery in the face of death, their grave dangerand last and

greatest, the fact that one was the father of the beautiful creature he worshipped, wrought a sudden change in

Number Thirteen. In an instant he forgot that he had come here to kill the whitehaired man, and with a

bound stood in the center of the room an unarmed giant towering above the battling four.

The parang of the Dyak who sought Professor Maxon's life was already falling as a mighty hand grasped the

wrist of the head hunter; but even then it was too late to more than lessen the weight of the blow, and the

sharp edge of the blade bit deep into the forehead of the white man. As he sank to his knees his other

antagonist freed an arm from the embrace which had pinioned it to his side, but before he could deal the

professor a blow with the short knife that up to now he had been unable to use, Number Thirteen had hurled

Tearing him loose from his prey, he raised him far above his head and threw him heavily against the opposite

wall, then he turned his attention toward Sing's assailants. All that had so far saved the Chinaman from death

was the fact that the two savages were each so anxious to secure his head for the verandah rafters of his own

particular longhouse that they interfered with one another in the consummation of their common desire.

Although battling for his life, Sing had not failed to note the advent of the strange young giant, nor the part he

had played in succoring the professor, so that it was with a feeling of relief that he saw the newcomer turn his

attention toward those who were rapidly reducing the citadel of his own existence.

The two Dyaks who sought the trophy which nature had set upon the Chinaman's shoulders were so busily

engaged with their victim that they knew nothing of the presence of Number Thirteen until a mighty hand

seized each by the neck and they were raised bodily from the floor, shaken viciously for an instant, and then

hurled to the opposite end of the room upon the bodies of the two who had preceded them.

As Sing came to his feet he found Professor Maxon lying in a pool of his own blood, a great gash in his

forehead. He saw the white giant standing silently looking down upon the old man. Across the room the four

stunned Dyaks were recovering consciousness. Slowly and fearfully they regained their feet, and seeing that

no attention was being paid them, cast a parting, terrified look at the mighty creature who had defeated them

When they caught up with Rajah Muda Saffir near the beach, they narrated a fearful tale of fifty terrible white

men with whom they had battled valiantly, killing many, before they had been compelled to retreat in the face

of terrific odds. They swore that even then they had only returned because the girl was not in the

houseotherwise they should have brought her to their beloved master as he had directed.

Now Muda Saffir believed nothing that they said, but he was well pleased with the great treasure which had

so unexpectedly fallen into his hands, and he decided to make quite sure of that by transporting it to his own

land later he could return for the girl. So the ten war prahus of the Malay pulled quietly out of the little

cove upon the east side of the island, and bending their way toward the south circled its southern extremity

In the bungalow within the north campong Sing and Number Thirteen had lifted Professor Maxon to his bed,

and the Chinaman was engaged in bathing and bandaging the wound that had left the older man unconscious.

The white giant stood beside him watching his every move. He was trying to understand why sometimes men

killed one another and again defended and nursed. He was curious as to the cause of his own sudden change

in sentiment toward Professor Maxon. At last he gave the problem up as beyond his powers of solution, and

at Sing's command set about the task of helping to nurse the man whom he considered the author of his

As the two worked over the stricken man their ears were suddenly assailed by a wild commotion from the

direction of the workshop. There were sounds of battering upon wood, loud growls and roars, mingled with

weird shrieks and screams and the strange, uncanny gibbering of brainless things.

The giant did not answer. An expression of pain crossed his features, and he shudderedbut not from fear.

As von Horn and Virginia Maxon walked slowly beneath the dense shadows of the jungle he again renewed

his suit. It would please him more to have the girl accompany him voluntarily than to be compelled to take

her by force, but take her he would one way or another, and that, this very night, for all the plans were made

"I cannot do it, Doctor von Horn," she had said. "No matter how much danger I may be in here I cannot

desert my father on this lonely isle with only savage lascars and the terrible monsters of his own creation

surrounding him. Why, it would be little short of murder for us to do such a thing. I cannot see how you, his

"And now that you insist that his mind is sorely affected, it is only an added reason why I must remain with

Von Horn did not relish the insinuation in the accent which the girl put upon the last word.

"It is because I love you so, Virginia," he hastened to urge in extenuation of his suggested disloyalty. "I

cannot see you sacrificed to his horrible mania. You do not realize the imminence of your peril. Tomorrow

Number Thirteen was to have come to live beneath the same roof with you. You recall Number One whom

the stranger killed as the thing was bearing you away through the jungle? Can you imagine sleeping in the

same house with such a soulless thing? Eating your three meals a day at the same table with it? And knowing

all the time that in a few short weeks at the most you were destined to be given to the thing as its mate?

Virginia, you must be mad to consider for a moment remaining within reach of such a terrible peril.

"Come to Singapore with meit will take but a few daysand then we can return with some good medical

man and a couple of Europeans, and take your father away from the terrible creatures he has created. You

will be mine then and safe from the awful fate that now lies back there in the camp awaiting you. We can take

your father upon a long trip where rest and quiet can have an opportunity to restore his enfeebled mentality.

Come, Virginia! Come with me now. We can go directly to the Ithaca and safety. Say that you will come."

"I do not love you, I am afraid, Doctor von Horn, or I should certainly be moved by your appeal. If you wish

to bring help for my father I shall never cease to thank you if you will go to Singapore and fetch it, but it is

In the darkness the girl did not see the change that came over the man's face, but his next words revealed his

"Virginia," he said, "I love you, and I intend to have you. Nothing on earth can prevent me. When you know

me better you will return my love, but now I must risk offending you that I may save you for myself from the

monstrous connection which your father contemplates for you. If you will not come away from the island

Von Horn had gone too far. He cursed himself inwardly for a fool. Why the devil didn't that villain,

"No, Virginia," said the man, softly, after a moment's silence, "I could not do that; though my judgment tells

me that I should do it. You shall remain here if you insist and I will be with you to serve and protect both you

The words were fair, but the girl could not forget the ugly tone that had tinged his preceding statement. She

felt that she would be glad when she found herself safely within the bungalow once more.

Von Horn was about to reply when the war cries of Muda Saffir's Dyaks as they rushed out upon Bududreen

He thought the six with Bududreen were carrying out their part in a most realistic manner, and a grim smile

"I must go back there to my father," she said, "and so must you. Our place is thereGod give that we be not

too late," and before von Horn could stop her she turned and ran through the darkness of the jungle in the

Von Horn dashed after her, but so black was the night beneath the overhanging trees, festooned with their

dark myriad creepers, that the girl was out of sight in an instant, and upon the soft carpet of the rotting

The doctor made straight for the camp, but Virginia, unused to jungle trailing even by day, veered sharply to

the left. The sounds which had guided her at first soon died out, the brush became thicker, and presently she

realized that she had no conception of the direction of the camp. Coming to a spot where the trees were less

dense, and a little moonlight filtered to the ground, she paused to rest and attempt to regain her bearings.

As she stood listening for some sound which might indicate the whereabouts of the camp, she detected the

noise of a body approaching through the underbrush. Whether man or beast she could but conjecture and so

she stood with every nerve taut waiting the thing that floundered heavily toward her. She hoped it might be

von Horn, but the hideous war cries which had apprised her of enemies at the encampment made her fear that

Nearer and nearer came the sound, and the girl stood poised ready to fly when the dark face of Bududreen

suddenly emerged into the moonlight beside her. With an hysterical cry of relief the girl greeted him.

"Oh, Bududreen," she exclaimed, "what has happened at camp? Where is my father? Is he safe? Tell me."

The Malay could scarce believe the good fortune which had befallen him so quickly following the sore

affliction of losing the treasure. His evil mind worked quickly, so that he grasped the full possibilities that

"The camp was attacked by Dyaks, Miss Maxon," he replied. "Many of our men were killed, but your father

escaped and has gone to the ship. I have been searching for you and Doctor von Horn. Where is he?"

"He was with me but a moment ago. When we heard the cries at camp I hastened on to discover what

"He will be safe," said Bududreen, "for two of my men are waiting to guide you and the doctor to the ship in

case you returned to camp before I found you. Come, we will hasten on to the harbor. Your father will be

worried if we are long delayed, and he is anxious to make sail and escape before the Dyaks discover the

The man's story seemed plausible enough to Virginia, although she could not repress a little pang of regret

that her father had been willing to go on to the harbor before he knew her fate. However, she explained that

by her belief that his mind was unbalanced through constant application to his weird obsession.

Without demur, then, she turned and accompanied the rascally Malay toward the harbor. At the bank of the

little stream which led down to the Ithaca's berth the man lifted her to his shoulder and thus bore her the

balance of the way to the beach. Here two of his men were awaiting him in one of the ship's boats, and

Once on board Virginia started immediately for her father's cabin. As she crossed the deck she noticed that

the ship was ready to sail, and even as she descended the companionway she heard the rattle of the anchor

chain about the capstan. She wondered if von Horn could be on board too. It seemed remarkable that all

should have reached the Ithaca so quickly, and equally strange that none of her own people were on deck to

To her chagrin she found her father's cabin empty, and a moment's hurried investigation disclosed the fact

that von Horn's was unoccupied as well. Now her doubts turned quickly to fears, and with a little gasp of

dismay at the grim possibilities which surged through her imagination she ran quickly to the companionway,

but above her she saw that the hatch was down, and when she reached the top that it was fastened. Futilely

she beat upon the heavy planks with her delicate hands, calling aloud to Bududreen to release her, but there

was no reply, and with the realization of the hopelessness of her position she dropped back to the deck, and

returned to her stateroom. Here she locked and barricaded the door as best she could, and throwing herself

upon the berth awaited in dryeyed terror the next blow that fate held in store for her.

Shortly after von Horn became separated from Virginia he collided with the fleeing lascar who had escaped

the parangs of Muda Saffir's head hunters at the same time as had Bududreen. So terror stricken was the

fellow that he had thrown away his weapons in the panic of flight, which was all that saved von Horn from

death at the hands of the fear crazed man. To him, in the extremity of his fright, every man was an enemy,

and the doctor had a tough scuffle with him before he could impress upon the fellow that he was a friend.

From him von Horn obtained an incoherent account of the attack, together with the statement that he was the

only person in camp that escaped, all the others having been cut down by the savage horde that overwhelmed

them. It was with difficulty that von Horn persuaded the man to return with him to the campong, but finally,

he consented to do so when the doctor with drawn revolver, presented death as the only alternative.

Together they cautiously crept back toward the palisade, not knowing at what moment they might come upon

the savage enemy that had wrought such havoc among their forces, for von Horn believed the lascar's story

that all had perished. His only motive for returning lay in his desire to prevent Virginia Maxon falling into the

Whatever faults and vices were Carl von Horn's cowardice was not one of them, and it was without an

instant's hesitation that he had elected to return to succor the girl he believed to have returned to camp,

although he entertained no scruples regarding the further pursuit of his dishonorable intentions toward her,

As the two approached the campong quiet seemed to have again fallen about the scene of the recent alarm.

Muda Saffir had passed on toward the cove with the heavy chest, and the scrimmage in the bungalow was

over. But von Horn did not abate his watchfulness as he stole silently within the precincts of the north

campong, and, hugging the denser shadows of the palisade, crept toward the house.

The dim light in the living room drew him to one of the windows which overlooked the verandah. A glance

within howed him Sing and Number Thirteen bending over the body of Professor Maxon. He noted the

handsome face and perfect figure of the young giant. He saw the bodies of the dead lascars and Dyaks. Then

he saw Sing and the young man lift Professor Maxon tenderly in their arms and bear him to his own room.

A sudden wave of jealous rage swept through the man's vicious brain. He saw that the soulless thing within

was endowed with a kindlier and more noble nature than he himself possessed. He had planted the seed of

hatred and revenge within his untutored heart without avail, for he read in the dead bodies of Bududreen's

men and the two Dyaks the story of Number Thirteen's defense of the man von Horn had hoped he would

Von Horn was quite sure now that Virginia Maxon was not within the campong. Either she had become

confused and lost in the jungle after she left him, or had fallen into the hands of the wild horde that had

attacked the camp. Convinced of this, there was no obstacle to thwart the sudden plan which entered his

malign brain. With a single act he could rid himself of the man whom he had come to look upon as a rival,

whose physical beauty aroused his envy and jealousy; he could remove, in the person of Professor Maxon,

the parental obstacle which might either prevent his obtaining the girl, or make serious trouble for him in case

he took her by force, and at the same time he could transfer to the girl's possession the fortune which was

now her father'sand he could accomplish it all without tainting his own hands with the blood of his

As the full possibilities of his devilish scheme unfolded before his mind's eye a grim smile curled his straight,

thin lips at the thought of the fate which it entailed for the creator of the hideous monsters of the court of

As he turned away from the bungalow his eye fell upon the trembling lascar who had accompanied him to the

edge of the verandah. He must be rid of the fellow in some wayno eye must see him perpetrate the deed he

"Hasten to the harbor," he said to the man in a low voice, "and tell those on board the ship that I shall join

them presently. Have all in readiness to sail. I wish to fetch some of my belongingsall within the bungalow

No command could have better suited the sailor. Without a word he turned and fled toward the jungle. Von

Horn walked quickly to the workshop. The door hung open. Through the dark interior he strode straight to the

opposite door which let upon the court of mystery. On a nail driven into the door frame hung a heavy bull

whip. The doctor took it down as he raised the strong bar which held the door. Then he stepped through into

the moonlit inner campongthe bull whip in his right hand, a revolver in his left.

A half dozen misshapen monsters roved restlessly about the hard packed earth of the pen. The noise of the

battle in the adjoining enclosure had aroused them from slumber and awakened in their half formed brains

vague questionings and fears. At sight of von Horn several of them rushed for him with menacing growls, but

a swift crack of the bull whip brought them to a sudden realization of the identity of the intruder, so that they

Von Horn passed quickly to the low shed in which the remainder of the eleven were sleeping. With vicious

cuts from the stinging lash he lay about him upon the sleeping things. Roaring and shrieking in pain and

anger the creatures stumbled to their feet and lumbered awkwardly into the open. Two of them turned upon

their tormentor, but the burning weapon on their ill protected flesh sent them staggering back out of reach,

As cattle are driven, von Horn drove the miserable creatures toward the door of the workshop. At the

threshold of the dark interior the frightened things halted fearfully, and then as von Horn urged them on from

behind with his cruel whip they milled as cattle at the entrance to a strange corral.

Again and again he urged them for the door, but each time they turned away, and to escape the whip beat and

tore at the wall of the palisade in a vain effort to batter it from their pathway. Their roars and shrieks were

almost deafening as von Horn, losing what little remained of his scant selfcontrol, dashed among them

laying to right and left with the stern whip and the butt of his heavy revolver.

Most of the monsters scattered and turned back into the center of the enclosure, but three of them were forced

through the doorway into the workshop, from the darkness of which they saw the patch of moonlight through

the open door upon the opposite side. Toward this they scurried as von Horn turned back into the court of

Three more herculean efforts he made before he beat the last of the creatures through the outer doorway of

Among the age old arts of the celestials none is more strangely inspiring than that of medicine. Odd herbs and

unspeakable things when properly compounded under a favorable aspect of the heavenly bodies are potent to

achieve miraculous cures, and few are the Chinamen who do not brew some special concoction of their own

Sing was no exception in this respect. In various queerly shaped, bamboo covered jars he maintained a supply

of tonics, balms and lotions. His first thought when he had made Professor Maxon comfortable upon the

couch was to fetch his pet nostrum, for there burned strong within his yellow breast the same powerful

yearning to experiment that marks the greatest of the profession to whose mysteries he aspired.

Though the hideous noises from the inner campong rose threateningly, the imperturbable Sing left the

bungalow and passed across the north campong to the little leanto that he had built for himself against the

Here he rummaged about in the dark until he had found the two phials he sought. The noise of the monsters

upon the opposite side of the palisade had now assumed the dimensions of pandemonium, and through it all

the Chinaman heard the constant crack that was the sharp voice of the bull whip.

He had completed his search and was about to return to the bungalow when the first of the monsters emerged

into the north campong from the workshop. At the door of his shack Sing Lee drew back to watch, for he

knew that behind them some one was driving these horribly grotesque creatures from their prison.

One by one they came lumbering into the moonlight until Sing had counted eleven, and then, after them,

came a white man, bull whip and revolver in hand. It was von Horn. The equatorial moon shone full upon

himthere could be no mistake. The Chinaman saw him turn and lock the workshop door; saw him cross the

campong to the outer gate; saw him pass through toward the jungle, closing the gate.

Of a sudden there was a sad, low moaning through the surrounding trees; dense, black clouds obscured the

radiant moon; and then with hideous thunder and vivid flashes of lightning the tempest broke in all its fury of

lashing wind and hurtling deluge. It was the first great storm of the breaking up of the monsoon, and under

the cover of its darkness Sing Lee scurried through the monster filled campong to the bungalow. Within he

found the young man bathing Professor Maxon's head as he had directed him to do.

"All gettee out," he said, jerking his thumb in the direction of the court of mystery. "Eleven devils. Plenty

Number Thirteen had seen von Horn's extra bull whip hanging upon a peg in the living room. For answer he

stepped into that room and took the weapon down. Then he returned to the professor's side.

Outside the frightened monsters groped through the blinding rain and darkness in search of shelter. Each

vivid lightning flash, and bellowing of booming thunder brought responsive cries of rage and terror from their

hideous lips. It was Number Twelve who first spied the dim light showing through the bungalow's living

room window. With a low guttural to his companions he started toward the building. Up the low steps to the

verandah they crept. Number Twelve peered through the window. He saw no one within, but there was

His little knowledge and lesser reasoning faculties suggested no thought of a doorway. With a blow he

shattered the glass of the window. Then he forced his body through the narrow aperture. At the same moment

a gust of wind sucking through the broken panes drew open the door, and as Number Thirteen, warned by the

sound of breaking glass, sprang into the living room he was confronted by the entire horde of misshapen

His heart went out in pity toward the miserable crew, but he knew that his life as well as those of the two men

in the adjoining room depended upon the force and skill with which he might handle the grave crisis which

confronted them. He had seen and talked with most of the creatures when from time to time they had been

brought singly into the workshop that their creator might mitigate the wrong he had done by training the poor

A few were hopeless imbeciles, unable to comprehend more than the rudimentary requirements of filling

their bellies when food was placed before them; yet even these were endowed with superhuman strength; and

when aroused battled the more fiercely for the very reason of their brainlessness. Others, like Number

Twelve, were of a higher order of intelligence. They spoke English, and, after a fashion, reasoned in a crude

sort of way. These were by far the most dangerous, for as the power of comparison is the fundamental

principle of reasoning, so they were able to compare their lot with that of the few other men they had seen,

and with the help of von Horn to partially appreciate the horrible wrong that had been done them.

Von Horn, too, had let them know the identity of their creator, and thus implanted in their malformed brains

the insidious poison of revenge. Envy and jealousy were there as well, and hatred of all beings other than

themselves. They envied the ease and comparative beauty of the old professor and his assistant, and hated the

latter for the cruelty of the bull whip and the constant menace of the ever ready revolver; and so as they were

to them the representatives of the great human world of which they could never be a part, their envy and

jealousy and hatred of these men embraced the entire race which they represented.

It was such that Number Thirteen faced as he emerged from the professor's apartment.

"What do you want here?" he said, addressing Number Twelve, who stood a little in advance of the others.

"We have come for Maxon," growled the creature. "We have been penned up long enough. We want to be out

"Why do you wish to kill me?" asked the young man. "I am one of you. I was made in the same way that you

"No. He was wounded by a savage enemy. I have been helping to make him well again. He has wronged me

as much as he has you. If I do not wish to kill him, why should you? He did not mean to wrong us. He

thought that he was doing right. He is in trouble now and we should stay and protect him."

"He lies," suddenly shouted another of the horde. "He is not one of us. Kill him! Kill him! Kill Maxon, too,

The fellow started forward toward Number Thirteen as he spoke, and moved by the impulse of imitation the

"I have spoken fairly to you," said Number Thirteen in a low voice. "If you cannot understand fairness here is

Raising the bull whip above his head the young giant leaped among the advancing brutes and lay about him

with mighty strokes that put to shame the comparatively feeble blows with which von Horn had been wont to

For a moment they stood valiantly before his attack, but after two had grappled with him and been hurled

headlong to the floor they gave up and rushed incontinently out into the maelstrom of the screaming tempest.

In the doorway behind him Sing Lee had been standing waiting the outcome of the encounter and ready to

lend a hand were it required. As the two men turned back into the professor's room they saw that the

wounded man's eyes were open and upon them. At sight of Number Thirteen a questioning look came into his

"What has happened?" he asked feebly of Sing. "Where is my daughter? Where is Dr. von Horn? What is this

The blow of the parang upon the professor's skull had shocked his overwrought mind back into the path of

sanity. It had left him with a clear remembrance of the past, other than the recent fight in the living

roomthat was a blankand it had given him a clearer perspective of the plans he had been entertaining for

The first thought that sprang to his mind as he saw Number Thirteen before him was of his mad intention to

give his daughter to such a monstrous thing. With the recollection came a sudden loathing and hatred of this

"My God!" groaned the stricken man; and then his eyes again falling upon the silent giant in the doorway,

"Out of my sight," he shrieked. "Out of my sight! Never let me see you againand to think that I would have

given my only daughter to a soulless thing like you. Away! Before I go mad and slay you."

Slowly the color mounted to the neck and face of the giant then suddenly it receded, leaving him as ashen

as death. His great hand gripped the stock of the bull whip. A single blow was all that would have been

needed to silence Professor Maxon forever. There was murder in the wounded heart. The man took a step

forward into the room, and then something drew his eyes to a spot upon the wall just above Professor

Without a word Number Thirteen turned upon his heel and passed out into the storm.

Scarcely had the Ithaca cleared the reef which lies almost across the mouth of the little harbor where she had

been moored for so many months than the tempest broke upon her in all its terrific fury. Bududreen was no

mean sailor, but he was short handed, nor is it reasonable to suppose that even with a full crew he could have

weathered the terrific gale which beat down upon the hapless vessel. Buffeted by great waves, and stripped of

every shred of canvas by the force of the mighty wind that howled about her, the Ithaca drifted a hopeless

Below deck the terrified girl clung desperately to a stanchion as the stricken ship lunged sickeningly before

the hurricane. For half an hour the awful suspense endured, and then with a terrific crash the vessel struck,

Virginia Maxon sank to her knees in prayer, for this she thought must surely be the end. On deck Bududreen

and his crew had lashed themselves to the masts, and as the Ithaca struck the reef before the harbor, back

upon which she had been driven, the tall poles with their living freight snapped at the deck and went

overboard carrying every thing with them amid shrieks and cries of terror that were drowned and choked by

Twice the girl felt the ship strike upon the reef, then a great wave caught and carried her high into the air,

dropping her with a nauseating lunge which seemed to the imprisoned girl to be carrying the ship to the very

bottom of the ocean. With closed eyes she clung in silent prayer beside her berth waiting for the moment that

would bring the engulfing waters and oblivion praying that the end might come speedily and release her

from the torture of nervous apprehension that had terrorized her for what seemed an eternity.

After the last, long dive the Ithaca righted herself laboriously, wallowing drunkenly, but apparently upon an

even keel in less turbulent waters. One long minute dragged after another, yet no suffocating deluge poured in

upon the girl, and presently she realized that the ship had, at least temporarily, weathered the awful buffeting

of the savage elements. Now she felt but a gentle roll, though the wild turmoil of the storm still came to her

For a long hour she lay wondering what fate had overtaken the vessel and whither she had been driven, and

then, with a gentle grinding sound, the ship stopped, swung around, and finally came to rest with a slight list

to starboard. The wind howled about her, the torrential rain beat loudly upon her, but except for a slight

Hours passed with no other sounds than those of the rapidly waning tempest. The girl heard no signs of life

upon the ship. Her curiosity became more and more keenly aroused. She had that indefinable, intuitive

feeling that she was utterly alone upon the vessel, and at length, unable to endure the inaction and uncertainty

longer, made her way to the companion ladder where for half an hour she futilely attempted to remove the

As she worked she failed to hear the scraping of naked bodies clambering over the ship's side, or the padding

of unshod feet upon the deck above her. She was about to give up her work at the hatch when the heavy

wooden cover suddenly commenced to move above her as though actuated by some supernatural power.

Fascinated, the girl stood gazing in wideeyed astonishment as one end of the hatch rose higher and higher

until a little patch of blue sky revealed the fact that morning had come. Then the cover slid suddenly back and

The dark skin was creased in fierce wrinkles about the eyes and mouth. Gleaming tiger cat's teeth curved

upward from holes pierced to receive them in the upper half of each ear. The slit ear lobes supported heavy

rings whose weight had stretched the skin until the long loop rested upon the brown shoulders. The filed and

blackened teeth behind the loose lips added the last touch of hideousness to this terrible countenance.

Nor was this all. A score of equally ferocious faces peered down from behind the foremost. With a little

scream Virginia Maxon sprang back to the lower deck and ran toward her stateroom. Behind her she heard

As Number Thirteen came into the campong after quitting the bungalow his heart was a chaos of conflicting

emotions. His little world had been wiped out. His creatorthe man whom he thought his only friend and

benefactorhad suddenly turned against him. The beautiful creature he worshipped was either lost or dead;

Sing had said so. He was nothing but a miserable THING. There was no place in the world for him, and even

should he again find Virginia Maxon, he had von Horn's word for it that she would shrink from him and

With no plans and no hopes he walked aimlessly through the blinding rain, oblivious of it and of the vivid

lightning and deafening thunder. The palisade at length brought him to a sudden stop. Mechanically he

squatted on his haunches with his back against it, and there, in the midst of the fury of the storm he conquered

the tempest that raged in his own breast. The murder that rose again and again in his untaught heart he forced

back by thoughts of the sweet, pure face of the girl whose image he had set up in the inner temple of his

"He made me without a soul," he repeated over and over again to himself, "but I have found a soulshe shall

be my soul. Von Horn could not explain to me what a soul is. He does not know. None of them knows. I am

wiser than all the rest, for I have learned what a soul is. Eyes cannot see itfingers cannot feel it, but he who

possess it knows that it is there for it fills his whole breast with a great, wonderful love and worship for

something infinitely finer than man's dull senses can gauge something that guides him into paths far above

"Let those who will say that I have no soul, for I am satisfied with the soul I have found. It would never

permit me to inflict on others the terrible wrong that Professor Maxon has inflicted on meyet he never

doubts his own possession of a soul. It would not allow me to revel in the coarse brutalities of von

Hornand I am sure that von Horn thinks he has a soul. And if the savage men who came tonight to kill

have souls, then I am glad that my soul is after my own choosingI would not care for one like theirs."

The sudden equatorial dawn found the man still musing. The storm had ceased and as the daylight brought

the surroundings to view Number Thirteen became aware that he was not alone in the campong. All about

him lay the eleven terrible men whom he had driven from the bungalow the previous night. The sight of them

brought a realization of new responsibilities. To leave them here in the campong would mean the immediate

death of Professor Maxon and the Chinaman. To turn them into the jungle might mean a similar fate for

Virginia Maxon were she wandering about in search of the encampment Number Thirteen could not

believe that she was dead. It seemed too monstrous to believe that he should never see her again, and he knew

so little of death that it was impossible for him to realize that that beautiful creature ever could cease to be

The young man had determined to leave the camp himself partly on account of the cruel words Professor

Maxon had hurled at him the night before, but principally in order that he might search for the lost girl. Of

course he had not the remotest idea where to look for her, but as von Horn had explained that they were upon

As he looked at the sleeping monsters near him he determined that the only solution of his problem was to

take them all with him. Number Twelve lay closest to him, and stepping to his side he nudged him with the

"We are not wanted here," said Number Thirteen. "I am going away and you are all going with me. We shall

find a place where we may live in peace and freedom. Are you not tired of always being penned up?"

"You need not fear the whip," said the young man. "I shall not use it on those who make no trouble. Wake the

others and tell them what I have said. All must come with methose who refuse shall feel the whip."

Number Twelve did as he was bid. The creatures mumbled among themselves for a few minutes. Finally

Nine of them shuffled after him as he turned toward the outer gateonly Number Ten and Number Three

held back. The young man walked quickly to where they stood eyeing him sullenly. The others halted to

watchready to spring upon their new master should the tide of the impending battle turn against him. The

A loop in the butt of the bull whip was about the young man's wrist. Dropping the weapon from his hand it

still dangled by the loop. At the same instant he launched himself at the throat of Number Ten, for he realized

that a decisive victory now without the aid of the weapon they all feared would make the balance of his work

The brute met the charge with lowered head and outstretched hands, and in another second they were locked

in a clinch, tearing at one another like two great gorillas. For a moment Number Three stood watching the

battle, and then he too sprang in to aid his fellow mutineer. Number Thirteen was striking heavy blows with

his giant hands upon the face and head of his antagonist, while the long, uneven fangs of the latter had found

his breast and neck a half dozen times. Blood covered them both. Number Three threw his enormous weight

Again and again he got a hold upon the young giant's throat only to be shaken loose by the mighty muscles.

The excitement of the conflict was telling upon the malformed minds of the spectators. Presently one who

was almost brainless, acting upon the impulse of suggestion, leaped in among the fighters, striking and biting

at Number Thirteen. It was all that was neededanother second found the whole monstrous crew upon the

His mighty strength availed him but little in the unequal conflicteleven to one were too great odds even for

those powerful thews. His great advantage lay in his superior intelligence, but even this seemed futile in the

face of the enormous weight of numbers that opposed him. Time and again he had almost shaken himself free

Hither and thither about the campong the battle raged until the fighting mass rolled against the palisade, and

here, at last, with his back to the structure, Number Thirteen regained his feet, and with the heavy stock of the

bull whip beat off, for a moment, those nearest him. All were winded, but when those who were left of the

eleven original antagonists drew back to regain their breath, the young giant gave them no respite, but leaped

The result was as his higher intelligence had foreseen the creatures scattered to escape the fury of the lash

and a moment later he had them at his mercy. About the campong lay four who had felt the full force of his

Not a moment did he give them to recuperate after he had scattered them before he rounded them up once

more near the outer gatebut now they were docile and submissive. In pairs he ordered them to lift their

unconscious comrades to their shoulders and bear them into the jungle, for Number Thirteen was setting out

Once well within the jungle they halted to eat of the more familiar fruit which had always formed the greater

bulk of their sustenance. Thus refreshed, they set out once more after the leader who wandered aimlessly

beneath the shade of the tall jungle trees amidst the gorgeous tropic blooms and gay, songless birds and of

the twelve only the leader saw the beauties that surrounded them or felt the strange, mysterious influence of

the untracked world they trod. Chance took them toward the west until presently they emerged upon the

harbor's edge, where from the matted jungle they overlooked for the first time the waters of the little bay and

the broader expanse of strait beyond, until their eyes rested at last upon the blurred lines of distant Borneo.

From other vantage points at the jungle's border two other watchers looked out upon the scene. One was the

lascar whom von Horn had sent down to the Ithaca the night before but who had reached the harbor after she

sailed. The other was von Horn himself. And both were looking out upon the dismantled wreck of the Ithaca

Neither ventured forth from his place of concealment, for beyond the Ithaca ten prahus were pulling

Rajah Muda Saffir, caught by the hurricane the preceding night as he had been about to beat across to

Borneo, had scurried for shelter within one of the many tiny coves which indent the island's entire coast. It

happened that his haven of refuge was but a short distance south of the harbor in which he knew the Ithaca to

be moored, and in the morning he decided to pay that vessel a visit in the hope that he might learn something

The wily Malay had long refrained from pillaging the Ithaca for fear such an act might militate against the

larger villainy he purposed perpetrating against her white owner, but when he rounded the point and came in

sight of the stranded wreck he put all such thoughts from him and made straight for the helpless hulk to glean

The old rascal had little thought of the priceless treasure hidden beneath the Ithaca's clean swept deck as he

ordered his savage henchmen up her sides while he lay back upon his sleeping mat beneath the canopy which

Number Thirteen watched the wild head hunters with keenest interest as they clambered aboard the vessel.

With von Horn he saw the evident amazement which followed the opening of the hatch, though neither

guessed its cause. He saw the haste with which a half dozen of the warriors leaped down the companionway

and heard their savage shouts as they pursued their quarry within the bowels of the ship.

A few minutes later they emerged dragging a woman with them. Von Horn and Number Thirteen recognized

the girl simultaneously, but the doctor, though he ground his teeth in futile rage, knew that he was helpless to

"Come!" he called to his grotesque horde. "Kill the men and save the girlthe one with the golden hair," he

added as the sudden realization came to him that none of these creatures ever had seen a woman before. Then

he dashed from the shelter of the jungle, across the beach and into the water, his fearful pack at his heels.

The Ithaca lay now in about five feet of water, and the war prahus of Muda Saffir rode upon her seaward side,

so that those who manned them did not see the twelve who splashed through the water from land. Never

before had any of the rescuers seen a larger body of water than the little stream which wound through their

campong, but accidents and experiments in that had taught them the danger of submerging their heads. They

could not swim, but all were large and strong, so that they were able to push their way rapidly through the

Here they found difficulty in reaching the deck, but in a moment Number Thirteen had solved the problem by

requiring one of the taller of his crew to stand close in by the ship while the others clambered upon his

Number Thirteen was the first to pull himself over the vessel's side, and as he did so he saw some half dozen

Dyaks preparing to quit her upon the opposite side. They were the last of the boarding partythe girl was

nowhere in sight. Without waiting for his men the young giant sprang across the deck. His one thought was to

At the sound of his approach the Dyak turned, and at the sight of a pajama clad white man armed only with a

long whip they emitted savage cries of anticipation, counting the handsome trophy upon the white one's

shoulders as already theirs. Number Thirteen would have paid no attention whatever to them had they not

molested him, for he wished only to reach the girl's side as quickly as possible; but in another moment he

found himself confronted by a half dozen dancing wild men, brandishing wicked looking parangs, and crying

Up went the great bull whip, and without abating his speed a particle the man leaped into the midst of the

wicked blades that menaced him. Right and left with the quickness of thought the heavy lash fell upon heads,

shoulders and sword arms. There was no chance to wield a blade in the face of that terrific onslaught, for the

whip fell, not with the ordinary force of a manheld lash, but with all the stupendous power of those giant

A single blow felled the foremost head hunter, breaking his shoulder and biting into the flesh and bone as a

heavy sword bites. Again and again the merciless leather fell, while in the boats below Muda Saffir and his

men shouted loud cries of encouragement to their companions on the ship, and a wideeyed girl in the stern

of Muda Saffir's own prahu looked on in terror, hope and admiration at the man of her own race whom she

Virginia Maxon recognized her champion instantly as he who had fought for her and saved her once before,

from the hideous creature of her father's experiments. With hands tight pressed against her bosom the girl

leaned forward, tense with excitement, watching every move of the lithe, giant figure, as, silhouetted against

the brazen tropic sky, it towered above the dancing, shrieking head hunters who writhed beneath the awful

Muda Saffir saw that the battle was going against his men, and it filled him with anger. Turning to one of his

headmen he ordered two more boatloads of warriors to the Ithaca's deck. As they were rushing to obey their

leader's command there was a respite in the fighting on the ship, for the three who had not fallen beneath the

bull whip had leaped overboard to escape the fate which had overtaken their comrades.

As the reinforcements started to scale the vessel's side Number Thirteen's searching eyes found the girl in

Muda Saffir's prahu, where it lay a little off from the Ithaca, and as the first of the enemy clambered over the

rail she saw a smile of encouragement light the clear cut features of the man above her. Virginia Maxon sent

back an answering smilea smile that filled the young giant's heart with pride and happiness such a smile

as brave men have been content to fight and die for since woman first learned the art of smiling.

Number Thirteen could have beaten back many of the reinforcing party before they reached the deck, but he

did not care to do so. In the spontaneous ethics of the man there seemed no place for an unfair advantage over

an enemy, and added to this was his newly acquired love of battle, so he was content to wait until his foes

stood on an even footing with him before he engaged them. But they never came within reach of his ready

lash. Instead, as they came above the ship's side they paused, wideeyed and terror stricken, and with cries of

fear and consternation dropped precipitately back into the sea, shouting warnings to those who were about to

Muda Saffir arose in his prahu cursing and reviling the frightened Dyaks. He did not know the cause of their

alarm, but presently he saw it behind the giant upon the Ithaca's deck eleven horrible monstrosities

At the sight his own dark countenance went ashen, and with trembling lips he ordered his oarsmen to pull for

the open sea. The girl, too, saw the frightful creatures that surrounded the man upon the deck. She thought

that they were about to attack him, and gave a little cry of warning, but in another instant she realized that

they were his companions, for with him they rushed to the side of the ship to stand for a moment looking

Two prahus lay directly beneath them, and into these the head hunters were scrambling. The balance of the

flotilla was now making rapid headway under oars and sail toward the mouth of the harbor, and as Number

Thirteen saw that the girl was being borne away from him, he shouted a command to his misshapen crew, and

without waiting to see if they would follow him leaped into the nearer of the two boats beneath.

It was already half filled with Dyaks, some of whom were hastily manning the oars. Others of the head

hunters were scrambling over the gunwale. In an instant pandemonium reigned in the little vessel. Savage

warriors sprang toward the tall figure towering above them. Parangs flashed. The bull whip hissed and

cracked, and then into the midst of it all came a horrid avalanche of fearful and grotesque monsters the

The battle in the prahu was short and fierce. For an instant the Dyaks attempted to hold their own, but in the

face of the snarling, rending horde that engulfed them terror got the better of them all, so that those who were

The other prahu had not waited to assist its companion, but before it was entirely filled had gotten under way

Von Horn had been an excited witness to all that had occurred upon the tranquil bosom of the little harbor.

He had been filled with astonishment at sight of the inhabitants of the court of mystery fighting under the

leadership of Number Thirteen, and now he watched interestedly the outcome of the adventure.

The sight of the girl being borne away in the prahu of the Malay rajah to a fate worse than death, had roused

in him both keen regret and savage rage, but it was the life of ease that he was losing that concerned him

most. He had felt so sure of winning Professor Maxon's fortune through either a forced or voluntary marriage

with the girl that his feelings now were as of one whose rightful heritage has been foully wrested from him.

The thought of the girl's danger and suffering were of but secondary consideration to him, for the man was

Quite the contrary were the emotions which urged on the soulless creature who now found himself in

undisputed possession of a Dyak war prahu. His only thought was of the girl being rapidly borne away across

the glimmering waters of the strait. He knew not to what dangers she was exposed, or what fate threatened

her. All he knew was that she had been taken by force against her will. He had seen the look of terror in her

eyes, and the dawning hope die out as the boat that carried her had turned rapidly away from the Ithaca. His

one thought now was to rescue her from her abductors and return her to her father. Of his own reward or

profit he entertained no single thoughtit was enough if he could fight for her. That would be reward

Neither Number Thirteen nor any of his crew had ever before seen a boat, and outside of the leader there was

scarcely enough brains in the entire party to render it at all likely that they could ever navigate it, but the

young man saw that the other prahus were being propelled by the long sticks which protruded from their

sides, and he also saw the sails bellying with wind, though he had but a vague conception of their purpose.

For a moment he stood watching the actions of the men in the nearest boat, and then he set himself to the task

of placing his own men at the oars and instructing them in the manner of wielding the unfamiliar implements.

For an hour he worked with the brainless things that constituted his party. They could not seem to learn what

was required of them. The paddles were continually fouling one another, or being merely dipped into the

The tiresome maneuvering had carried them about in circles back and forth across the harbor, but by it

Number Thirteen had himself learned something of the proper method of propelling and steering his craft. At

last, more through accident than intent, they came opposite the mouth of the basin, and then chance did for

them what days of arduous endeavor upon their part might have failed to accomplish.

As they hung wavering in the opening, the broad strait before them, and their quarry fast diminishing to small

specks upon the distant horizon, a vagrant land breeze suddenly bellied the flapping sail. The prahu swung

quickly about with nose pointed toward the sea, the sail filled, and the long, narrow craft shot out of the

On shore behind them the infuriated Dyaks who had escaped to the beach danced and shrieked; von Horn,

from his hiding place, looked on in surprised wonder, and Bududreen's lascar cursed the fate that had left a

Smaller and smaller grew the retreating prahu as, straight as an arrow, she sped toward the dim outline of

Von Horn cursed the chance that had snatched the girl from him, but he tried to content himself with the

thought that the treasure probably still rested in the cabin of the Ithaca, where Bududreen was to have

deposited it. He wished that the Dyaks would take themselves off so that he could board the vessel and carry

the chest ashore to bury it against the time that fate should provide a means for transporting it to Singapore.

In the water below him floated the Ithaca's masts, their grisly burdens still lashed to their wave swept sides.

Bududreen lay there, his contorted features set in a horrible grimace of death which grinned up at the man he

would have cheated, as though conscious of the fact that the white man would have betrayed him had the

opportunity come, the while he enjoyed in anticipation the other's disappointment in the loss of both the girl

The tide was rising now, and presently the Ithaca began to float. No sooner was it apparent that she was free

than the Dyaks sprang into the water and swam to her side. Like monkeys they scrambled aboard, swarming

below deck in search, thought von Horn, of pillage. He prayed that they would not discover the chest.

Presently a half dozen of them leaped overboard and swam to the mass of tangled spars and rigging which

littered the beach. Selecting what they wished they returned to the vessel, and a few minutes later von Horn

was chagrined to see them stepping a jury mast he thought the treasure lay in the Ithaca's cabin.

Before dark the vessel moved slowly out of the harbor, setting a course across the strait in the direction that

the war prahus had taken. When it was apparent that there was no danger that the head hunters would return,

the lascar came from his hiding place, and dancing up and down upon the shore screamed warlike challenges

Von Horn also came forth, much to the sailor's surprise, and in silence the two stood watching the

disappearing ship. At length they turned and made their way up the stream toward campthere was no

longer aught to fear there. Von Horn wondered if the creatures he had loosed upon Professor Maxon had done

their work before they left, or if they had all turned to mush as had Number Thirteen.

Once at the encampment his questions were answered, for he saw a light in the bungalow, and as he mounted

"Von Horn!" exclaimed the professor. "You, then, are not dead; but where is Virginia? Tell me that she is

"She has been carried away" was the startling answer. "Your creatures, under the thing you wished to marry

her to, have taken her to Borneo with a band of Malay and Dyak pirates. I was alone and could do nothing to

"God!" moaned the old man. "Why did I not kill the thing when it stood within my power to do so. Only last

"I was mad," retorted the professor. "Could you not see that I was mad? Oh, why did you not stop me? You

were sane enough. You at least might have forced me to abandon the insane obsession which has

overpowered my reason for all these terrible months. I am sane now, but it is too latetoo late."

"Both you and your daughter could only have interpreted any such action on my part as instigated by self

interest, for you both knew that I wanted to make her my wife," replied the other. "My hands were tied. I am

sorry now that I did not act, but you can readily see the position in which I was placed."

"Can nothing be done to get her back?" cried the father. "There must be some way to save her. Do it von

Horn, and not only is my daughter yours but my wealth as well every thing that I possess shall be yours if

"The Ithaca is gone, too," replied the doctor. "There is only a small boat that I hid in the jungle for some such

emergency. It will carry us to Borneo, but what can we four do against five hundred pirates and the dozen

monsters you have brought into the world? No, Professor Maxon, I fear there is little hope, though I am

willing to give my life in an attempt to save Virginia. You will not forget your promise should we succeed?"

"No, doctor," replied the old man. "I swear that you shall have Virginia as your wife, and all my property

Sing Lee had been a silent listener to this strange conversation. An odd look came into his slant eyes as he

heard von Horn exact a confirmation from the professor, but what passed in his shrewd mind only he could

It was too late to attempt to make a start that day for Borneo, as darkness had already fallen. Professor Maxon

and von Horn walked over to the workshop and the inner campong to ascertain what damage had been done

On their return Sing was setting the table on the verandah for the evening meal. The two men were talking,

and without making his presence noticeable the Chinaman hovered about ever within ear shot.

"I cannot make it out, von Horn," Professor Maxon was saying. "Not a board broken, and the doors both

apparently opened intentionally by someone familiar with locks and bolts. Who could have done it?"

"But the chest!" expostulated the other. "What in the world would he want of that enormous and heavy

"He might have thought that it contained treasure," hazarded von Horn, in an innocent tone of voice.

"Bosh, my dear man," replied Professor Maxon. "He knew nothing of treasures, or money, or the need or

value of either. I tell you the workshop was opened, and the inner campong as well by some one who knew

the value of money and wanted that chest, but why they should have released the creatures from the inner

"And I tell you Professor Maxon that it could have been none other than Number Thirteen," insisted von

Horn. "Did I not myself see him leading his eleven monsters as easily as a captain commands his company?

The fellow is brighter than we have imagined. He has learned much from us both, he has reasoned, and he has

"That is simple," returned von Horn. "You have held out hopes to him that soon he should come to live under

your roof with Virginia. The creature has been madly infatuated with her ever since the day he took her from

Number One, and you have encouraged his infatuation until yesterday. Then you regained your sanity and put

him in his rightful place. What is the result? Denied the easy prey he expected he immediately decided to take

it by force, and with that end in view, and taking advantage of the series of remarkable circumstances which

played into his hands, he liberated his fellows, and with them hastened to the beach in search of Virginia and

in hopes of being able to fly with her upon the Ithaca. There he met the Malay pirates, and together they

formed an alliance under terms of which Number Thirteen is to have the girl, and the pirates the chest in

return for transporting him and his crew to Borneo. Why it is all perfectly simple and logical, Professor

"You may be right, doctor," answered the old man. "But it is idle to conjecture. Tomorrow we can be up and

doing, so let us get what sleep we can tonight. We shall need all our energies if we are to save my poor, dear

At the very moment that he spoke the object of his contumely was entering the dark mouth of a broad river

that flowed from out of the heart of savage Borneo. In the prahu with him his eleven hideous companions

now bent to their paddles with slightly increased efficiency. Before them the leader saw a fire blazing upon a

tiny island in the center of the stream. Toward this they turned their silent way. Grimly the war prahu with its

At last Number Thirteen made out the figures of men about the fire, and as they came still closer he was sure

that they were members of the very party he had been pursuing across the broad waters for hours. The prahus

Just as the young giants' prahu came within the circle of firelight a swarthy Malay approached the fire,

dragging a white girl roughly by the arm. No more was needed to convince Number Thirteen of the identity

of the party. With a low command to his fellows he urged them to redoubled speed. At the same instant a

Dyak warrior caught sight of the approaching boat as it sped into the full glare of the light.

At sight of the occupants the head hunters scattered for their own prahus. The frightful aspect of the enemy

turned their savage hearts to water, leaving no fight in their ordinarily warlike souls.

So quickly they moved that as the pursuing prahu touched the bank all the nearer boats had been launched,

and the remaining pirates were scurrying across the little island for those which lay upon the opposite side.

Among these was the Malay who guarded the girl, but he had not been quick enough to prevent Virginia

Maxon recognizing the stalwart figure standing in the bow of the oncoming craft.

As he dragged her away toward the prahu of Muda Saffir she cried out to the strange white man who seemed

"Help! Help!" she called. "This way! Across the island!" And then the brown hand of her jailer closed over

her mouth. Like a tigress she fought to free herself, or to detain her captor until the rescue party should catch

up with them, but the scoundrel was muscled like a bull, and when the girl held back he lifted her across his

Rajah Muda Saffir had no stomach for a fight himself, but he was loathe to lose the prize he had but just won,

and seeing that his men were panicstricken he saw no alternative but to rally them for a brief stand that

would give the little moment required to slip away in his own prahu with the girl.

Calling aloud for those around him to come to his support he halted fifty yards from his boat just as Number

Thirteen with his fierce, brainless horde swept up from the opposite side of the island in the wake of him who

bore Virginia Maxon. The old rajah succeeded in gathering some fifty warriors about him from the crews of

the two boats which lay near his. His own men he hastened to their posts in his prahu that they might be

The Dyak warriors presented an awe inspiring spectacle in the fitful light of the nearby camp fire. The

ferocity of their fierce faces was accentuated by the upturned, bristling tiger cat's teeth which protruded from

every ear; while the long feathers of the Argus pheasant waving from their warcaps, the brilliant colors of

their warcoats trimmed with the black and white feathers of the hornbill, and the strange devices upon their

gaudy shields but added to the savagery of their appearance as they danced and howled, menacing and

A single backward glance was all that Virginia Maxon found it possible to throw in the direction of the rescue

party, and in that she saw a sight that lived forever in her memory. At the head of his hideous, misshapen

pack sprang the stalwart young giant straight into the heart of the flashing parangs of the howling savages. To

right and left fell the mighty bull whip cutting down men with all the force and dispatch of a steel saber. The

Dyaks, encouraged by the presence of Muda Saffir in their rear, held their ground; and the infuriated,

brainless things that followed the wielder of the bull whip threw themselves upon the head hunters with

Number Ten wrested a parang from an adversary, and acting upon his example the other creatures were not

long in arming themselves in a similar manner. Cutting and jabbing they hewed their way through the solid

ranks of the enemy, until Muda Saffir, seeing that defeat was inevitable turned and fled toward his prahu.

Four of his creatures lay dead as the last of the Dyaks turned to escape from the mad white man who faced

naked steel with only a rawhide whip. In panic the head hunters made a wild dash for the two remaining

prahus, for Muda Saffir had succeeded in getting away from the island in safety.

Number Thirteen reached the water's edge but a moment after the prow of the rajah's craft had cleared the

shore and was swinging up stream under the vigorous strokes of its fifty oarsmen. For an instant he stood

poised upon the bank as though to spring after the retreating prahu, but the knowledge that he could not swim

held him backit was useless to throw away his life when the need of it was so great if Virginia Maxon was

Turning to the other prahus he saw that one was already launched, but that the crew of the other was engaged

in a desperate battle with the seven remaining members of his crew for possession of the boat. Leaping

among the combatants he urged his fellows aboard the prahu which was already half filled with Dyaks. Then

he shoved the boat out into the river, jumping aboard himself as its prow cleared the gravelly beach.

For several minutes that long, hollowed log was a veritable floating hell of savage, screaming men locked in

deadly battle. The sharp parangs of the head hunters were no match for the superhuman muscles of the

creatures that battered them about; now lifting one high above his fellows and using the body as a club to beat

down those nearby; again snapping an arm or leg as one might break a pipe stem; or hurling a living

antagonist headlong above the heads of his fellows to the dark waters of the river. And above them all in the

thickest of the fight, towering even above his own giants, rose the mighty figure of the terrible white man,

Two more of Number Thirteen's creatures had been cut down in the prahu, but the loss among the Dyaks had

been infinitely greater, and to it was now added the desertions of the terror stricken savages who seemed to

fear the frightful countenances of their adversaries even as much as they did their prowess.

There remained but a handful of brown warriors in one end of the boat when the advantage of utilizing their

knowledge of the river and of navigation occurred to Number Thirteen. Calling to his men he commanded

them to cease killing, making prisoners of those who remained instead. So accustomed had his pack now

become to receiving and acting upon his orders that they changed their tactics immediately, and one by one

With difficulty Number Thirteen communicated with them, for among them there was but a single warrior

who had ever had intercourse with an Englishman, but at last by means of signs and the few words that were

common to them both he made the native understand that he would spare the lives of himself and his

The Dyaks felt but little loyalty for the rascally Malay they served, since in common with all their kind they

and theirs had suffered for generations at the hands of the cruel, crafty and unscrupulous race that had

usurped the administration of their land. So it was not difficult to secure from them the promise of assistance

Number Thirteen noticed that when they addressed him it was always as Bulan, and upon questioning them

he discovered that they had given him this title of honor partly in view of his wonderful fighting ability and

partly because the sight of his white face emerging from out of the darkness of the river into the firelight of

their blazing camp fire had carried to their impressionable minds a suggestion of the tropic moon which they

admired and reverenced. Both the name and the idea appealed to Number Thirteen and from that time he

The loss of time resulting from the fight in the prahu and the ensuing peace parley permitted Muda Saffir to

put considerable distance between himself and his pursuers. The Malay's boat was now alone, for of the eight

prahus that remained of the original fleet it was the only one which had taken this branch of the river, the

others having scurried into a smaller southerly arm after the fight upon the island, that they might the more

Only Barunda, the headman, knew which channel Rajah Muda Saffir intended following, and Muda

wondered why it was that the two boats that were to have borne Barunda's men did not catch up with his.

While he had left Barunda and his warriors engaged in battle with the strangers he did not for an instant

imagine that they would suffer any severe loss, and that one of their boats should be captured was beyond

belief. But this was precisely what had happened, and the second boat, seeing the direction taken by the

So it was that while Rajah Muda Saffir moved leisurely up the river toward his distant stronghold waiting for

the other boats of his fleet to overtake him, Barunda, the headman, guided the white enemy swiftly after him.

Barunda had discovered that it was the girl alone this white man wanted. Evidently he either knew nothing of

the treasure chest lying in the bottom of Muda Saffir's boat, or, knowing, was indifferent. In either event

Barunda thought that he saw a chance to possess himself of the rich contents of the heavy box, and so served

Beneath the paddles of the natives and the five remaining members of his pack Bulan sped up the dark river

after the single prahu with its priceless freight. Already six of the creatures of Professor Maxon's experiments

had given up their lives in the service of his daughter, and the remaining six were pushing forward through

the inky blackness of the jungle night into the untracked heart of savage Borneo to rescue her from her

Far ahead of them in the bottom of the great prahu crouched the girl they sought. Her thoughts were of the

man she felt intuitively to possess the strength, endurance and ability to overcome every obstacle and reach

her at last. Would he come in time? Ah, that was the question. The mystery of the stranger appealed to her. A

thousand times she had attempted to solve the question of his first appearance on the island at the very

moment that his mighty muscles were needed to rescue her from the horrible creature of her father's creation.

Then there was his unaccountable disappearance for weeks; there was von Horn's strange reticence and

seeming ignorance as to the circumstances which brought the young man to the island, or his equally

unaccountable disappearance after having rescued her from Number One. And now, when she suddenly

found herself in need of protection, here was the same young man turning up in a most miraculous fashion,

The riddle was too deep for hershe could not solve it; and then her thoughts were interrupted by the thin,

brown hand of Rajah Muda Saffir as it encircled her waist and drew her toward him. Upon the evil lips were

hot words of passion. The girl wrenched herself from the man's embrace, and, with a little scream of terror,

sprang to her feet, and as Muda Saffir arose to grasp her again she struck him full in the face with one small,

Directly behind the Malay lay the heavy chest of Professor Maxon. As the man stepped backward to recover

his equilibrium both feet struck the obstacle. For an instant he tottered with wildly waving arms in an

endeavor to regain his lost balance, then, with a curse upon his lips, he lunged across the box and over the

The great chest in the bottom of Rajah Muda Saffir's prahu had awakened in other hearts as well as his, blind

greed and avarice; so that as it had been the indirect cause of his disaster it now proved the incentive to

another to turn the mishap to his own profit, and to the final undoing of the Malay.

The panglima Ninaka of the Signana Dyaks who manned Muda Saffir's war prahu saw his chief disappear

beneath the swift waters of the river, but the word of command that would have sent the boat hurriedly back

to pick up the swimmer was not given. Instead a lusty cry for greater speed ahead urged the sinuous muscles

gliding beneath the sleek brown hides; and when Muda Saffir rose to the surface with a cry for help upon his

lips Ninaka shouted back to him in derision, consigning his carcass to the belly of the nearest crocodile.

In futile rage Muda Saffir called down the most terrible curses of Allah and his Prophet upon the head of

Ninaka and his progeny to the fifth generation, and upon the shades of his forefathers, and upon the grim

skulls which hung from the rafters of his longhouse. Then he turned and swam rapidly toward the shore.

Ninaka, now in possession of both the chest and the girl, was rich indeed, but with Muda Saffir dead he

scarce knew to whom he could dispose of the white girl for a price that would make it worth while to be

burdened with the danger and responsibility of retaining her. He had had some experience of white men in the

past and knew that dire were the punishments meted to those who wronged the white man's women. All

through the remainder of the long night Ninaka pondered the question deeply. At last he turned to Virginia.

"Why does the big white man who leads the ourang outangs follow us?" he asked. "Is it the chest he desires,

"It is certainly not the chest," replied the girl. "He wishes to take me back to my father, that is all. If you will

Ninaka looked at her quizzically for a moment. Evidently then she was of some value. Possibly should he

retain her he could wring a handsome ransom from the white man. He would wait and see, it were always an

easy matter to rid himself of her should circumstances require. The river was there, deep, dark and silent, and

Shortly after day break Ninaka beached his prahu before the longhouse of a peaceful river tribe. The chest

he hid in the underbrush close by his boat, and with the girl ascended the notched log that led to the verandah

of the structure, which, stretching away for three hundred yards upon its tall piles, resembled a huge

The dwellers in the longhouse extended every courtesy to Ninaka and his crew. At the former's request

Virginia was hidden away in a dark sleeping closet in one of the windowless living rooms which opened

along the verandah for the full length of the house. Here a native girl brought her food and water, sitting,

while she ate, in rapt contemplation of the white skin and golden hair of the strange female.

At about the time that Ninaka pulled his prahu upon the beach before the longhouse, Muda Saffir from the

safety of the concealing underbrush upon the shore saw a familiar war prahu forging rapidly up the stream.

As it approached him he was about to call aloud to those who manned it, for in the bow he saw a number of

his own men; but a second glance as the boat came opposite him caused him to alter his intention and drop

further into the engulfing verdure, for behind his men squatted five of the terrible monsters that had wrought

such havoc with his expedition, and in the stern he saw his own Barunda in friendly converse with the mad

As the boat disappeared about a bend in the river Rajah Muda Saffir arose, shaking his fist in the direction it

had vanished and, cursing anew and volubly, damned each separate hair in the heads of the faithless Barunda

and the traitorous Ninaka. Then he resumed his watch for the friendly prahu, or smaller sampan which he

knew time would eventually bring from up or down the river to his rescue, for who of the surrounding natives

At the longhouse which harbored Ninaka and his crew, Barunda and Bulan stopped with theirs to obtain

food and rest. The quick eye of the Dyak chieftain recognized the prahu of Rajah Muda Saffir where it lay

upon the beach, but he said nothing to his white companion of what it auguredit might be well to discover

At the top of the notched log he was met by Ninaka, who, with horrorwide eyes, looked down upon the

fearsome monstrosities that lumbered awkwardly up the rude ladder in the wake of the agile Dyaks and the

Ninaka jerked his thumb toward the river. "Some crocodile has feasted well," he said significantly. Barunda

"The white man wants the girl," remarked Barunda. "He does not suspect that you are one of Muda Saffir's

people. If he guessed that you knew the whereabouts of the girl he would torture the truth from you and then

kill you. He does not care for the treasure. There is enough in that great chest for two, Ninaka. Let us be

friends. Together we can divide it; otherwise neither of us will get any of it. What do you say, Ninaka?"

The panglima scowled. He did not relish the idea of sharing his prize, but he was shrewd enough to realize

that Barunda possessed the power to rob him of it all, so at last he acquiesced, though with poor grace.

Bulan had stood near during this conversation, unable, of course, to understand a single word of the native

"What does the man say?" he asked Barunda. "Has he seen anything of the prahu bearing the girl?"

"Yes," replied the Dyak. "He says that two hours ago such a war prahu passed on its way up riverhe saw

the white girl plainly. Also he knows whither they are bound, and how, by crossing through the jungle on

Bulan, suspecting no treachery, was all anxiety to be off at once. Barunda suggested that in case of some

possible emergency causing the quarry to return down the river it would be well to have a force remain at the

longhouse to intercept them. He volunteered to undertake the command of this party. Ninaka, he said, would

furnish guides to escort Bulan and his men through the jungle to the point at which they might expect to find

And so, with the girl he sought lying within fifty feet of him, Bulan started off through the jungle with two of

Ninaka's Dyaks as guidesguides who had been well instructed by their panglima as to their duties.

Twisting and turning through the dense maze of underbrush and closegrowing, lofty trees the little party of

For hours the tiresome march was continued, until at last the guides halted, apparently to consult each other

as to the proper direction. By signs they made known to Bulan that they did not agree upon the right course to

pursue from there on, and that they had decided that it would be best for each to advance a little way in the

direction he thought the right one while Bulan and his five creatures remained where they were.

"We will go but a little way," said the spokesman, "and then we shall return and lead you in the proper

Bulan saw no harm in this, and without a shade of suspicion sat down upon a fallen tree and watched his two

guides disappear into the jungle in opposite directions. Once out of sight of the white man the two turned

back and met a short distance in the rear of the party they had desertedin another moment they were

It was fully an hour thereafter that doubts began to enter Bulan's head, and as the day dragged on he came to

realize that he and his weird pack were alone and lost in the heart of a strange and tangled web of tropical

No sooner had Bulan and his party disappeared in the jungle than Barunda and Ninaka made haste to embark

with the chest and the girl and push rapidly on up the river toward the wild and inaccessible regions of the

interior. Virginia Maxon's strong hope of succor had been gradually waning as no sign of the rescue party

appeared as the day wore on. Somewhere behind her upon the broad river she was sure a long, narrow native

prahu was being urged forward in pursuit, and that in command of it was the young giant who was now never

For hours she strained her eyes over the stern of the craft that was bearing her deeper and deeper into the wild

heart of fierce Borneo. On either shore they occasionally passed a native longhouse, and the girl could not

help but wonder at the quiet and peace which reigned over these little settlements. It was as though they were

passing along a beaten highway in the center of a civilized community; and yet she knew that the men who

lolled upon the verandahs, puffing indolently upon their cigarettes or chewing betel nut, were all head

hunters, and that along the verandah rafters above them hung the grisly trophies of their prowess.

Yet as she glanced from them to her new captors she could not but feel that she would prefer captivity in one

of the settlements they were passingthere at least she might find an opportunity to communicate with her

father, or be discovered by the rescue party as it came up the river. The idea grew upon her as the day

advanced until she spent the time in watching furtively for some means of escape should they but touch the

shore momentarily; and though they halted twice her captors were too watchful to permit her the slightest

Barunda and Ninaka urged their men on, with brief rests, all day, nor did they halt even after night had closed

down upon the river. On, on the swift prahu sped up the winding channel which had now dwindled to a

narrow stream, at intervals rushing strongly between rocky walls with a current that tested the strength of the

Longhouses had become more and more infrequent until for some time now no sign of human habitation

had been visible. The jungle undergrowth was scantier and the spaces between the boles of the forest trees

more open. Virginia Maxon was almost frantic with despair as the utter helplessness of her position grew

upon her. Each stroke of those slender paddles was driving her farther and farther from friends, or the

possibility of rescue. Night had fallen, dark and impenetrable, and with it had come the haunting fears that

Barunda and Ninaka were whispering together in low gutturals, and to the girl's distorted and fear excited

imagination it seemed possible that she alone must be the subject of their plotting. The prahu was gliding

through a stretch of comparatively quiet and placid water where the stream spread out into a little basin just

above a narrow gorge through which they had just forced their way by dint of the most laborious exertions on

Virginia watched the two men near her furtively. They were deeply engrossed in their conversation. Neither

was looking in her direction. The backs of the paddlers were all toward her. Stealthily she rose to a stooping

position at the boat's side. For a moment she paused, and then, almost noiselessly, dove overboard and

It was the slight rocking of the prahu that caused Barunda to look suddenly about to discover the reason for

the disturbance. For a moment neither of the men apprehended the girl's absence. Ninaka was the first to do

so, and it was he who called loudly to the paddlers to bring the boat to a stop. Then they dropped down the

The moment that Virginia Maxon felt the waters close above her head she struck out beneath the surface for

the shore upon the opposite side to that toward which she had dived into the river. She knew that if any had

seen her leave the prahu they would naturally expect to intercept her on her way toward the nearest shore, and

so she took this means of outwitting them, although it meant nearly double the distance to be covered.

After swimming a short distance beneath the surface the girl rose and looked about her. Up the river a few

yards she caught the phosphorescent gleam of water upon the prahu's paddles as they brought her to a sudden

stop in obedience to Ninaka's command. Then she saw the dark mass of the warcraft drifting down toward

Again she dove and with strong strokes headed for the shore. The next time that she rose she was terrified to

see the prahu looming close behind her. The paddlers were propelling the boat slowly in her direction it

was almost upon her nowthere was a shout from a man in the bowshe had been seen.

Like a flash she dove once more and, turning, struck out rapidly straight back beneath the oncoming boat.

When she came to the surface again it was to find herself as far from shore as she had been when she first

quitted the prahu, but the craft was now circling far below her, and she set out once again to retrace her way

toward the inky mass of shore line which loomed apparently near and yet, as she knew, was some

As she swam, her mind, filled with the terrors of the night, conjured recollection of the stories she had heard

of the fierce crocodiles which infest certain of the rivers of Borneo. Again and again she could have sworn

that she felt some huge, slimy body sweep beneath her in the mysterious waters of this unknown river.

Behind her she saw the prahu turn back up stream, but now her mind was suddenly engaged with a new

danger, for the girl realized that the strong current was bearing her down stream more rapidly than she had

imagined. Already she could hear the increasing roar of the river as it rushed, wild and tumultuous, through

the entrance to the narrow gorge below her. How far it was to shore she could not guess, or how far to the

certain death of the swirling waters toward which she was being drawn by an irresistible force; but of one

thing she was certain, her strength was rapidly waning, and she must reach the bank quickly.

With redoubled energy she struck out in one last mighty effort to reach the shore. The tug of the current was

strong upon her, like a giant hand reaching up out of the cruel river to bear her back to death. She felt her

strength ebbing quicklyher strokes now were feeble and futile. With a prayer to her Maker she threw her

hands above her head in the last effort of the drowning swimmer to clutch at even thin air for supportthe

current caught and swirled her downward toward the gorge, and, at the same instant her fingers touched and

With the last flickering spark of vitality that remained in her poor, exhausted body Virginia Maxon clung to

the frail support that a kind Providence had thrust into her hands. How long she hung there she never knew,

but finally a little strength returned to her, and presently she realized that it was a pendant creeper hanging

low from a jungle tree upon the bank that had saved her from the river's rapacious maw.

Inch by inch she worked herself upward toward the bank, and at last, weak and panting, sunk exhausted to the

cool carpet of grass that grew to the water's edge. Almost immediately tired, Nature plunged her into a deep

sleep. It was daylight when she awoke, dreaming that the tall young giant had rescued her from a band of

Through half open lids she saw the sunlight filtering through the leafy canopy above hershe wondered at

the realism of her dream; full consciousness returned and with it the conviction that she was in truth being

held close by strong arms against a bosom that throbbed to the beating of a real heart.

With a sudden start she opened her eyes wide to look up into the hideous face of a giant ourang outang.

The morning following the capture of Virginia Maxon by Muda Saffir, Professor Maxon, von Horn, Sing Lee

and the sole surviving lascar from the crew of the Ithaca set out across the strait toward the mainland of

Borneo in the small boat which the doctor had secreted in the jungle near the harbor. The party was well

equipped with firearms and ammunition, and the bottom of the boat was packed full with provisions and

cooking utensils. Von Horn had been careful to see that the boat was furnished with a mast and sail, and now,

under a good breeze the party was making excellent time toward the mysterious land of their destination.

They had scarcely cleared the harbor when they sighted a ship far out across the strait. Its erratic movements

riveted their attention upon it, and later, as they drew nearer, they perceived that the strange craft was a good

sized schooner with but a single short mast and tiny sail. For a minute or two her sail would belly with the

wind and the vessel make headway, then she would come suddenly about, only to repeat the same tactics a

moment later. She sailed first this way and then that, losing one minute what she had gained the minute

"It is the Ithaca," he said, "and her Dyak crew are having a devil of a time managing hershe acts as though

Von Horn ran the small boat within hailing distance of the dismasted hulk whose side was now lined with

waving, gesticulating natives. They were peaceful fishermen, they explained, whose prahus had been

wrecked in the recent typhoon. They had barely escaped with their lives by clambering aboard this wreck

which Allah had been so merciful as to place directly in their road. Would the Tuan Besar be so good as to

Von Horn promised to help them on condition that they would guide him and his party to the stronghold of

Rajah Muda Saffir in the heart of Borneo. The Dyaks willingly agreed, and von Horn worked his small boat

in close under the Ithaca's stern. Here he found that the rudder had been all but unshipped, probably as the

vessel was lifted over the reef during the storm, but a single pintle remaining in its gudgeon. A half hour's

work was sufficient to repair the damage, and then the two boats continued their journey toward the mouth of

Inside the river's mouth an anchorage was found for the Ithaca near the very island upon which the fierce

battle between Number Thirteen and Muda Saffir's forces had occurred. From the deck of the larger vessel

the deserted prahu which had borne Bulan across the strait was visible, as were the bodies of the slain Dyaks

In excited tones the head hunters called von Horn's attention to these evidences of conflict, and the doctor

drew his boat up to the island and leaped ashore, followed by Professor Maxon and Sing. Here they found the

dead bodies of the four monsters who had fallen in an attempt to rescue their creator's daughter, though little

About the corpses of the four were the bodies of a dozen Dyak warriors attesting to the ferocity of the

encounter and the savage prowess of the unarmed creatures who had sold their poor lives so dearly.

"Evidently they fell out about the possession of the captive," suggested von Horn. "Let us hope that she did

not fall into the clutches of Number Thirteen any fate would be better than that."

"God give that that has not befallen her," moaned Professor Maxon. "The pirates might but hold her for

ransom, but should that soulless fiend possess her my prayer is that she found the strength and the means to

Sing Lee said nothing, but in his heart he hoped that Virginia Maxon was not in the power of Rajah Muda

Saffir. The brief experience he had had with Number Thirteen during the fight in the bungalow had rather

warmed his wrinkled old heart toward the friendless young giant, and he was a sufficiently good judge of

human nature to be confident that the girl would be comparatively safe in his keeping.

It was quickly decided to abandon the small boat and embark the entire party in the deserted war prahu. A

half hour later saw the strangely mixed expedition forging up the river, but not until von Horn had boarded

Far above them on the right bank Muda Saffir still squatted in his hiding place, for no friendly prahu or

sampan had passed his way since dawn. His keen eyes roving constantly up and down the long stretch of

river that was visible from his position finally sighted a war prahu coming toward him from down stream. As

it drew closer he recognized it as one which had belonged to his own fleet before his unhappy encounter with

the wild white man and his abhorrent pack, and a moment later his heart leaped as he saw the familiar faces

of several of his men; but who were the strangers in the stern, and what was a Chinaman doing perched there

The prahu was nearly opposite him before he recognized Professor Maxon and von Horn as the white men of

the little island. He wondered how much they knew of his part in the raid upon their encampment. Bududreen

had told him much concerning the doctor, and as Muda Saffir recalled the fact that von Horn was anxious to

possess himself of both the treasure and the girl he guessed that he would be safe in the man's hands so long

as he could hold out promises of turning one or the other over to him; and so, as he was tired of squatting

upon the uncomfortable bank and was very hungry, he arose and hailed the passing prahu.

His men recognized his voice immediately and as they knew nothing of the defection of any of their fellows,

turned the boat's prow toward shore without waiting for the command from von Horn. The latter, fearing

treachery, sprang to his feet with raised rifle, but when one of the paddlers explained that it was the Rajah

Muda Saffir who hailed them and that he was alone von Horn permitted them to draw nearer the shore,

though he continued to stand ready to thwart any attempted treachery and warned both the professor and Sing

As the prahu's nose touched the bank Muda Saffir stepped aboard and with many protestations of gratitude

explained that he had fallen overboard from his own prahu the night before and that evidently his followers

thought him drowned, since none of his boats had returned to search for him. Scarcely had the Malay seated

himself before von Horn began questioning him in the rajah's native tongue, not a word of which was

intelligible to Professor Maxon. Sing, however, was as familiar with it as was von Horn.

"What girl, Tuan Besar?" inquired the wily Malay innocently. "And what treasure? The white man speaks in

"Come, come," cried von Horn impatiently. "Let us have no foolishness. You know perfectly well what I

mean it will go far better with you if we work together as friends. I want the girlif she is

unharmedand I will divide the treasure with you if you will help me to obtain them; otherwise you shall

"The girl and the treasure were both stolen from me by a rascally panglima, Ninaka," said Muda Saffir,

seeing that it would be as well to simulate friendship for the white man for the time being at leastthere

would always be an opportunity to use a kris upon him in the remote fastness of the interior to which Muda

"He killed many of my men, and the last I saw of him he was pushing up the river after the girl and the

"If another should ask you," continued von Horn with a meaningful glance toward Professor Maxon, "it will

be well to say that the girl was stolen by this white giant and that you suffered defeat in an attempt to rescue

Muda Saffir nodded. Here was a man after his own heart, which loved intrigue and duplicity. Evidently he

would be a good ally in wreaking vengeance upon the white giant who had caused all his discomfiture

At the longhouse at which Barunda and Ninaka had halted, Muda Saffir learned all that had transpired, his

informants being the two Dyaks who had led Bulan and his pack into the jungle. He imparted the information

to von Horn and both men were delighted that thus their most formidable enemy had been disposed of. It

would be but a question of time before the inexperienced creatures perished in the dense forest that they

ever could retrace their steps to the river was most unlikely, and the chances were that one by one they would

Again the party embarked, reinforced by the two Dyaks who were only too glad to renew their allegiance to

Muda Saffir while he was backed by the guns of the white men. On and on they paddled up the river,

gleaning from the dwellers in the various longhouses information of the passing of the two prahus with

Professor Maxon was impatient to hear every detail that von Horn obtained from Muda Saffir and the various

Dyaks that were interviewed at the first longhouse and along the stretch of river they covered. The doctor

told him that Number Thirteen still had Virginia and was fleeing up the river in a swift prahu. He enlarged

upon the valor shown by Muda Saffir and his men in their noble attempt to rescue his daughter, and through

it all Sing Lee sat with half closed eyes, apparently oblivious to all that passed before him. What were the

Far in the interior of the jungle Bulan and his five monsters stumbled on in an effort to find the river. Had

they known it they were moving parallel with the stream, but a few miles from it. At times it wound in wide

detours close to the path of the lost creatures, and again it circled far away from them.

As they travelled they subsisted upon the fruits with which they had become familiar upon the island of their

creation. They suffered greatly for lack of water, but finally stumbled upon a small stream at which they

filled their parched stomachs. Here it occurred to Bulan that it would be wise to follow the little river, since

they could be no more completely lost than they now were no matter where it should lead them, and it would

As they proceeded down the bank of the stream it grew in size until presently it became a fair sized river, and

Bulan had hopes that it might indeed prove the stream that they had ascended from the ocean and that soon he

would meet with the prahus and possibly find Virginia Maxon herself. The strenuous march of the six

through the jungle had torn their light cotton garments into shreds so that they were all practically naked,

while their bodies were scratched and bleeding from countless wounds inflicted by sharp thorns and tangled

Bulan still carried his heavy bull whip while his five companions were armed with the parangs they had taken

from the Dyaks they had overpowered upon the island at the mouth of the river. It was upon this strange and

remarkable company that the sharp eyes of a score of river Dyaks peered through the foliage. The head

hunters had been engaged in collecting camphor crystals when their quick ears caught the noisy passage of

the six while yet at a considerable distance, and with ready parangs the savages crept stealthily toward the

At first they were terror stricken at the hideous visages of five of the creatures they beheld, but when they

saw how few their numbers, and how poorly armed they were, as well as the awkwardness with which they

carried their parangs, denoting their unfamiliarity with the weapons, they took heart and prepared to ambush

What prizes those terrible heads would be when properly dried and decorated! The savages fairly trembled in

anticipation of the commotion they would cause in the precincts of their longhouse when they returned with

Their victims came blundering on through the dense jungle to where the twenty sleek brown warriors lay in

wait for them. Bulan was in the lead, and close behind him in single file lumbered his awkward crew.

Suddenly there was a chorus of savage cries close beside him and simultaneously he found himself in the

Like lightning his bull whip flew into action, and to the astonished warriors it was as though a score of men

were upon them in the person of this mighty white giant. Following the example of their leader the five

creatures at his back leaped upon the nearest warriors, and though they wielded their parangs awkwardly the

superhuman strength back of their cuts and thrusts sent the already blood stained blades through many a

The Dyaks would gladly have retreated after the first surprise of their initial attack, but Bulan urged his men

on after them, and so they were forced to fight to preserve their lives at all. At last five of them managed to

escape into the jungle, but fifteen remained quietly upon the earth where they had fallenthe victims of their

own over confidence. Beside them lay two of Bulan's five, so that now the little party was reduced to

fourand the problem that had faced Professor Maxon was so much closer to its own solution.

From the bodies of the dead Dyaks Bulan and his three companions, Number Three, Number Ten, and

Number Twelve, took enough loin cloths, caps, warcoats, shields and weapons to fit them out completely,

after discarding the ragged remnants of their cotton pajamas, and now, even more terrible in appearance than

before, the rapidly vanishing company of soulless monsters continued their aimless wandering down the

The five Dyaks who had escaped carried the news of the terrible creatures that had fallen upon them in the

jungle, and of the awful prowess of the giant white man who led them. They told of how, armed only with a

huge whip, he had been a match and more than a match for the best warriors of the tribe, and the news that

they started spread rapidly down the river from one longhouse to another until it reached the broad stream

into which the smaller river flowed, and then it travelled up and down to the headwaters above and the ocean

far below in the remarkable manner that news travels in the wild places of the world.

So it was that as Bulan advanced he found the longhouses in his path deserted, and came to the larger river

and turned up toward its head without meeting with resistance or even catching a glimpse of the

That night they slept in the longhouse near the bank of the greater stream, while its rightful occupants made

the best of it in the jungle behind. The next morning found the four again on the march ere the sun had

scarcely lighted the dark places of the forest, for Bulan was now sure that he was on the right trail and that the

new river that he had come to was indeed the same that he had traversed in the Prahu with Barunda.

It must have been close to noon when the young giant's ears caught the sound of the movement of some

animal in the jungle a short distance to his right and away from the river. His experience with men had taught

him to be wary, for it was evident that every man's hand was against him, so he determined to learn at once

whether the noise he heard came from some human enemy lurking along his trail ready to spring upon him

with naked parang at a moment that he was least prepared, or merely from some jungle brute.

Cautiously he threaded his way through the matted vegetation in the direction of the sound. Although a

parang from the body of a vanquished Dyak hung at his side he grasped his bull whip ready in his right hand,

preferring it to the less accustomed weapon of the head hunter. For a dozen yards he advanced without

sighting the object of his search, but presently his efforts were rewarded by a glimpse of a reddish, hairy

body, and a pair of close set, wicked eyes peering at him from behind a giant tree.

At the same instant a slight movement at one side attracted his attention to where another similar figure

crouched in the underbrush, and then a third, fourth and fifth became evident about him. Bulan looked in

wonderment upon the strange, manlike creatures who eyed him threateningly from every hand. They stood

fully as high as the brown Dyak warriors, but their bodies were naked except for the growth of reddish hair

The lips of the nearest were raised in an angry snarl that exposed wicked looking fighting fangs, but the

beasts did not seem inclined to initiate hostilities, and as they were unarmed and evidently but engaged upon

their own affairs Bulan decided to withdraw without arousing them further. As he turned to retrace his steps

he found his three companions gazing in wideeyed astonishment upon the strange new creatures which

Number Ten was grinning broadly, while Number Three advanced cautiously toward one of the creatures,

making a low guttural noise, that could only be interpreted as peaceful and conciliatorymore like a feline

"What are you doing?" cried Bulan. "Leave them alone. They have not offered to harm us."

"They are like us," replied Number Three. "They must be our own people. I am going with them."

"And I," echoed Number Twelve. "At last we have found our own, let us all go with them and live with them,

far away from the men who would beat us with great whips, and cut us with their sharp swords."

"Neither are we human beings," retorted Number Twelve. "Has not von Horn told us so many times?"

"If I am not now a human being," replied Bulan, "I intend to be one, and so I shall act as a human being

should act. I shall not go to live with savage beasts, nor shall you. Come with me as I tell you, or you shall

"We shall do as we please," growled Number Ten, baring his fangs. "You are not our master. We have

followed you as long as we intend to. We are tired of forever walking, walking, walking through the bushes

that tear our flesh and hurt us. Go and be a human being if you think you can, but do not longer interfere with

us or we shall kill you," and he looked first at Number Three and then at Number Twelve for approval of his

Number Three nodded his grotesque and hideous head he was so covered with long black hair that he more

nearly resembled an ourang outang than a human being. Number Twelve looked doubtful.

"I think Number Ten is right," he said at last. "We are not human. We have no souls. We are things. And

while you, Bulan, are beautiful, yet you are as much a soulless thing as wethat much von Horn taught us

well. So I believe that it would be better were we to keep forever from the sight of men. I do not much like

the thought of living with these strange, hairy monsters, but we might find a place here in the jungle where

"I do not want to live alone," cried Number Three. "I want a mate, and I see a beautiful one yonder now. I am

going after her," and with that he again started toward a female ourang outang; but the lady bared her fangs

"Even the beasts will have none of us," cried Number Ten angrily. "Let us take them by force then," and he

As he raised his voice there came an answering cry from a little distance aheada cry for help, and it was in

"I am coming!" shouted Bulan, and without another glance at his mutinous crew he sprang through the line of

On the morning that Bulan set out with his three monsters from the deserted longhouse in which they had

spent the night, Professor Maxon's party was speeding up the river, constantly buoyed with hope by the

repeated reports of natives that the white girl had been seen passing in a war prahu.

In translating this information to Professor Maxon, von Horn habitually made it appear that the girl was in the

hands of Number Thirteen, or Bulan, as they had now come to call him owing to the natives' constant use of

that name in speaking of the strange, and formidable white giant who had invaded their land.

At the last longhouse below the gorge, the head of which had witnessed Virginia Maxon's escape from the

clutches of Ninaka and Barunda, the searching party was forced to stop owing to a sudden attack of fever

which had prostrated the professor. Here they found a woman who had a strange tale to relate of a remarkable

It seemed that she had been straining tapioca in a little stream which flowed out of the jungle at the rear of the

longhouse when her attention was attracted by the crashing of an animal through the bushes a few yards

above her. As she looked she saw a huge MIAS PAPPAN cross the stream, bearing in his arms the dead, or

Her description of the MIAS PAPPAN was such as to half convince von Horn that she might have seen

Number Three carrying Virginia Maxon, although he could not reconcile the idea with the story that the two

Of course it was possible that they might have made their way over land to this point, but it seemed scarcely

credibleand then, how could they have come into posession of Virginia Maxon, whom every report except

this last agreed was still in the hands of Ninaka and Barunda. There was always the possibility that the

natives had lied to him, and the more he questioned the Dyak woman the more firmly convinced he became

The outcome of it was that von Horn finally decided to make an attempt to follow the trail of the creature that

the woman had seen, and with this plan in view persuaded Muda Saffir to arrange with the chief of the

longhouse at which they then were to furnish him with trackers and an escort of warriors, promising them

some splendid heads should they be successful in overhauling Bulan and his pack.

Professor Maxon was too ill to accompany the expedition, and von Horn set out alone with his Dyak allies.

For a time after they departed Sing Lee fretted and fidgeted upon the verandah of the longhouse. He wholly

distrusted von Horn, and from motives of his own finally decided to follow him. The trail of the party was

plainly discernible, and the Chinaman had no difficulty in following them, so that they had gone no great way

before he came within hearing distance of them. Always just far enough behind to be out of sight, he kept

pace with the little column as it marched through the torrid heat of the morning, until a little after noon he

was startled by the sudden cry of a woman in distress, and the answering shout of a man.

The voices came from a point in the jungle a little to his right and behind him, and without waiting for the

column to return, or even to ascertain if they had heard the cries, Sing ran rapidly in the direction of the

alarm. For a time he saw nothing, but was guided by the snapping of twigs and the rustling of bushes ahead,

where the authors of the commotion were evidently moving swiftly through the jungle.

Presently a strange sight burst upon his astonished vision. It was the hideous Number Three in mad pursuit of

a female ourang outang, and an instant later he saw Number Twelve and Number Ten in battle with two

males, while beyond he heard the voice of a man shouting encouragement to some one as he dashed through

the jungle. It was in this last event that Sing's interest centered, for he was sure that he recognized the voice

as that of Bulan, while the first cry for help which he had heard had been in a woman's voice, and Sing knew

Those whom he pursued were moving rapidly through the jungle which was now becoming more and more

open, but the Chinaman was no mean runner, and it was not long before he drew within sight of the object of

His first glimpse was of Bulan, running swiftly between two huge bull ourang outangs that snapped and tore

at him as he bounded forward cutting and slashing at his foes with his heavy whip. Just in front of the trio

was another bull bearing in his arms the unconscious form of Virginia Maxon who had fainted at the first

response to her cry for help. Sing was armed with a heavy revolver but he dared not attempt to use it for fear

that he might wound either Bulan or the girl, and so he was forced to remain but a passive spectator of what

Bulan, notwithstanding the running battle the two bulls were forcing upon him, was gaining steadily upon the

fleeing ourang outang that was handicapped by the weight of the fair captive he bore in his huge, hairy arms.

As they came into a natural clearing in the jungle the fleeing bull glanced back to see his pursuer almost upon

In another instant Bulan and the three bulls were rolling and tumbling about the ground, a mass of flying fur

and blood from which rose fierce and angry roars and growls, while Virginia Maxon lay quietly upon the

Sing was about to rush forward and pick her up, when he saw von Horn and his Dyaks leap into the clearing,

to which they had been guided by the sounds of the chase and the encounter. The doctor halted at the sight

that met his eyesthe prostrate form of the girl and the man battling with three huge bulls.

Then he gathered up Virginia Maxon, and with a sign to his Dyaks, who were thoroughly frightened at the

mere sight of the white giant of whom they had heard such terrible stories, turned and hastened back in the

direction from which they had come, leaving the man to what seemed must be a speedy and horrible death.

Sing Lee was astounded at the perfidy of the act. To Bulan alone was due the entire credit of having rescued

Professor Maxon's daughter, and yet in the very presence of his selfsacrificing loyalty and devotion von

Horn had deserted him without making the least attempt to aid him. But the wrinkled old Chinaman was

made of different metal, and had started forward to assist Bulan when a heavy hand suddenly fell upon his

shoulder. Looking around he saw the hideous face of Number Ten snarling into his. The bloodshot eyes of

the monster were flaming with rage. He had been torn and chewed by the bull with which he had fought, and

though he had finally overcome and killed the beast, a female which he had pursued had eluded him. In a

frenzy of passion and blood lust aroused by his wounds, disappointment and the taste of warm blood which

still smeared his lips and face, he had been seeking the female when he suddenly stumbled upon the hapless

With a roar he grasped the Chinaman as though to break him in two, but Sing was not at all inclined to give

up his life without a struggle, and Number Ten was quick to learn that no mean muscles moved beneath that

There could, however, have been but one outcome to the unequal struggle had Sing not been armed with a

revolver, though it was several seconds before he could bring it into play upon the great thing that shook and

tossed him about as though he had been a rat in the mouth of a terrier. But suddenly there was the sharp

report of a firearm, and another of Professor Maxon's unhappy experiments sank back into the nothingness

Then Sing turned his attention to Bulan and his three savage assailants, but, except for the dead body of a bull

ourang outang upon the spot where he had last seen the four struggling, there was no sign either of the white

man or his antagonists; nor, though he listened attentively, could he catch the slightest sound within the

jungle other than the rustling of the leaves and the raucous cries of the brilliant birds that flitted among the

For half an hour he searched in every direction, but finally, fearing that he might become lost in the mazes of

the unfamiliar forest he reluctantly turned his face toward the river and the longhouse that sheltered his

Here he found Professor Maxon much improvedthe safe return of Virginia having acted as a tonic upon

him. The girl and her father sat with von Horn upon the verandah of the longhouse as Sing clambered up the

notched log that led to it from the ground. At sight of Sing's wrinkled old face Virginia Maxon sprang to her

feet and ran forward to greet him, for she had been very fond of the shrewd and kindly Chinaman of whom

she had seen so much during the dreary months of her imprisonment within the campong.

"Oh, Sing," she cried, "where have you been? We were all so worried to think that no sooner was one of us

"Sing takee walk, Linee, las all," said the grinning Chinaman. "Velly glad see Linee black 'gain," and that

was all that Sing Lee had to say of the adventures through which he had just passed, and the strange sights

Again and again the girl and von Horn narrated the stirring scenes of the day, the latter being compelled to

repeat all that had transpired from the moment that he had heard Virginia's cry, though it was apparent that he

only consented to speak of his part in her rescue under the most considerable urging. Very pretty modesty,

"You see," said von Horn, "when I reached the spot Number Three, the brute that you thought was an ape,

had just turned you over to Number Thirteen, or, as the natives now call him, Bulan. You were then in a faint,

and when I attacked Bulan he dropped you to defend himself. I had expected a bitter fight from him after the

wild tales the natives have been telling of his ferocity, but it was soon evident that he is an arrant coward, for

I did not even have to fire my revolver a few thumps with the butt of it upon his brainless skull sent him

"How fortunate it is, my dear doctor," said Professor Maxon, "that you were bright enough to think of trailing

the miscreant into the jungle. But for that Virginia would still be in his clutches and by this time he would

"That you were generous enough to arrange when we first embarked upon the search for your daughter,"

"Just so, just so," said the professor, but a shade of trouble tinged the expression of his face, and a moment

later he arose, saying that he felt weak and tired and would go to his sleeping room and lie down for a while.

The fact was that Professor Maxon regretted the promise he had made von Horn relative to his daughter.

Once before he had made plans for her marriage only to regret them later; he hoped that he had made no

mistake this time, but he realized that it had scarcely been fair to Virginia to promise her to his assistant

without first obtaining her consent. Yet a promise was a promise, and, again, was it not true that but for von

Horn she would have been dead or worse than dead in a short time had she not been rescued from the

clutches of the soulless Bulan? Thus did the old man justify his action, and clinch the determination that he

had before reached to compel Virginia to wed von Horn should she, from some incomprehensible motive,

demur. Yet he hoped that the girl would make it easy, by accepting voluntarily the man who had saved her

Left alone, or as he thought alone, with the girl in the growing shadows of the evening, von Horn thought the

moment propitious for renewing his suit. He did not consider the natives squatting about them as of sufficient

consequence to consider, since they would not understand the language in which he addressed Virginia, and

in the dusk he failed to note that Sing squatted with the Dyaks, close behind them.

"Virginia," he commenced, after an interval of silence, "often before have I broached the subject nearest to

my heart, yet never have you given me much encouragement. Can you not feel for the man who would gladly

give his life for you, sufficient affection to permit you to make him the happiest man in the world? I do not

ask for all your love at firstthat will come later. Just give me the right to cherish and protect you. Say that

you will be my wife, Virginia, and we need have no more fears that the strange vagaries of your father's mind

can ever again jeopardize your life or your happiness as they have in the past."

"I feel that I owe you my life," replied the girl in a quiet voice, "and while I am now positive that my father

has entirely regained his sanity, and looks with as great abhorrence upon the terrible fate he planned for me as

"At the same time I do not wish to be the means of making you unhappy, as surely would be the result were I

to marry you without love. Let us wait until I know myself better. Though you have spoken to me of the

matter before, I realize now that I never have made any effort to determine whether or not I really can love

you. There is time enough before we reach civilization, if ever we are fortunate enough to do so at all. Will

you not be as generous as you are brave, and give me a few days before I must make you a final answer?"

With Professor Maxon's solemn promise to insure his ultimate success von Horn was very gentle and

gracious in deferring to the girl's wishes. The girl for her part could not put from her mind the disappointment

she had felt when she discovered that her rescuer was von Horn, and not the handsome young giant whom

When Number Thirteen had been mentioned she had always pictured him as a hideous monster, similar to the

creature that had seized her in the jungle beside the encampment that first day she had seen the mysterious

stranger, of whom she could obtain no information either from her father or von Horn. When she had recently

insisted that the same man had been at the head of her father's creatures in an attempt to rescue her, both von

Horn and Professor Maxon scoffed at the idea, until at last she was convinced that the fright and the firelight

had conspired to conjure in her brain the likeness of one who was linked by memory to another time of

Virginia could not understand why it was that the face of the stranger persisted in obtruding itself in her

memory. That the man was unusually good looking was undeniable, but she had known many good looking

men, nor was she especially impressionable to mere superficial beauty. No words had passed between them

on the occasion of their first meeting, so it could have been nothing that he said which caused the memory of

What was it then? Was it the memory of the moments that she had lain in his strong armswas it the shadow

of the sweet, warm glow that had suffused her as his eyes had caught hers upon his face?

The thing was tantalizingit was annoying. The girl blushed in mortification at the very thought that she

could cling so resolutely to the memory of a total stranger, andstill greater humiliationlong in the secret

She was angry with herself, but the more she tried to forget the young giant who had come into her life for so

brief an instant, the more she speculated upon his identity and the strange fate that had brought him to their

little, savage island only to snatch him away again as mysteriously as he had come, the less was the approval

Von Horn had left her, and strolled down to the river. Finally Virginia arose to seek the crude couch which

had been spread for her in one of the sleeping rooms of the longhouse. As she passed a group of natives

squatted nearby one of the number arose and approached her, and as she halted, half in fright, a low voice

"Why, Sing!" exclaimed Virginia. "What in the world do you mean by saying such a thing as that?"

"Never mind, Linee; you always good to old Sing. Sing no likee see you sadee. Dloctor Hornee velly bad

After the escape of the girl Barunda and Ninaka had fallen out over that affair and the division of the treasure,

with the result that the panglima had slipped a knife between the ribs of his companion and dropped the body

Barunda's followers, however, had been highly enraged at the act, and in the ensuing battle which they waged

for revenge of their murdered chief Ninaka and his crew had been forced to take to the shore and hide in the

With difficulty they had saved the chest and dragged it after them into the mazes of the underbrush. Finally,

however, they succeeded in eluding the angry enemy, and took up their march through the interior for the

head of a river which would lead them to the sea by another route, it being Ninaka's intention to dispose of

the contents of the chest as quickly as possible through the assistance of a rascally Malay who dwelt at

But presently it became apparent that he had not so easily escaped the fruits of his villainy as he had

supposed, for upon the evening of the first day the rear of his little column was attacked by some of

Barunda's warriors who had forged ahead of their fellows, with the result that the head of Ninaka's brother

Ninaka was panicstricken, since he knew that hampered as he was by the heavy chest he could neither fight

nor run to advantage. And so, upon a dark night near the head waters of the river he sought, he buried the

treasure at the foot of a mighty buttress tree, and with his parang made certain cabalistic signs upon the bole

whereby he might identify the spot when it was safe to return and disinter his booty. Then, with his men, he

hastened down the stream until they reached the head of prahu navigation where they stole a craft and

When the three bull ourang outangs closed upon Bulan he felt no fear as to the outcome of the battle, for

never in his experience had he coped with any muscles that his own mighty thews could not overcome. But as

the battle continued he realized that there might be a limit to the number of antagonists which he could

successfully withstand, since he could scarcely hope with but two hands to reach the throats of three enemies,

or ward off the blows and clutches of six powerful hands, or the gnashing of three sets of savage fangs.

When the truth dawned upon him that he was being killed the instinct of selfpreservation was born in him.

The ferocity with which he had fought before paled into insignificance beside the mad fury with which he

now attacked the three terrible creatures upon him. Shaking himself like a great lion he freed his arms for a

moment from the clinging embrace of his foemen, and seizing the neck of the nearest in his mighty clutch

There was one awful shriek from the tortured brute the vertebrae parted with a snap, and Bulan's

antagonists were reduced to two. Lunging and struggling the three combatants stumbled farther and farther

into the jungle beyond the clearing. With mighty blows the man buffeted the beasts to right and left, but ever

they returned in bestial rage to renew the encounter. Bulan was weakening rapidly under the terrific strain to

which he had been subjected, and from loss of the blood which flowed from his wounds; yet he was slowly

mastering the foaming brutes, who themselves were torn and bleeding and exhausted. Weaker and weaker

became the struggles of them all, when a sudden misstep sent Bulan stumbling headforemost against the stem

of a tree, where, stunned, he sank unconscious, at the mercy of the relentless bulls.

They had already sprung upon the prostrate form of their victim to finish what the accident had commenced,

when the loud report of Sing's revolver smote upon their startled ears as the Chinaman's bullet buried itself in

the heart of Number Ten. Never had the ourang outangs heard the sound of a firearm, and the noise,

seemingly in such close proximity, filled them with such terror that on the instant they forgot all else than this

new and startling fear, and with headlong haste leaped away into the jungle, leaving Bulan lying where he

So it was that though Sing passed within a few paces of the unconscious man he neither saw nor heard aught

When Bulan returned to consciousness the day was drawing to a close. He was stiff and sore and weak. His

head ached horribly. He thought that he must indeed be dying, for how could one who suffered so revive? But

at last he managed to stagger to his feet, and finally to reach the stream along which he had been travelling

earlier in the day. Here he quenched his thirst and bathed his wounds, and as darkness came he lay down to

The next morning found him refreshed and in considerably less pain, for the powers of recuperation which

belonged to his perfect health and mighty physique had already worked an almost miraculous transformation

in him. While he was hunting in the jungle for his breakfast he came suddenly upon Number Three and

At sight of him the two creatures started to run away, but he called to them reassuringly and they returned.

On closer inspection Bulan saw that both were covered with terrible wounds, and after questioning them

learned that they had fared almost as badly at the hands of the ourang outangs as had he.

"We hate each other," retorted the pessimistic Number Twelve. "There is no place for us in the world, and no

"Stop!" cried Bulan. "I am not a soulless thing. I am a man, and within me is as fine and pure a soul as any

man may own," and to his mind's eye came the vision of a fair face surmounted by a mass of loosely waving,

golden hair; but the brainless ones could not understand and only shook their heads as they resumed their

When the three had satisfied the cravings of their appetites two of them were for lying down to sleep until it

should be time to feed again, but Bulan, once more master, would not permit it, and forced them to

accompany him in his seemingly futile search for the girl who had disappeared so mysteriously after he had

Both Number Twelve and Number Three had assured him that the beasts had not recaptured her, for they had

seen the entire band flee madly through the jungle after hearing the report of the single shot which had so

terrorized Bulan's antagonists. Bulan did not know what to make of this occurrence which he had not himself

heard, the shot having come after he had lost consciousness at the foot of the tree; but from the description of

the noise given him by Number Twelve he felt sure that it must have been the report of a gun, and hoped that

it betokened the presence of Virginia Maxon's friends, and that she was now safe in their keeping.

Nevertheless he did not relinquish his determination to continue his search for her, since it was quite possible

that the gun had been fired by a native, many of whom possessed firearms. His first concern was for the girl's

welfare, which spoke eloquently for the chivalry of his character, and though he wished to see her for the

pleasure that it would give him, the hope of serving her was ever the first consideration in his mind.

He was now confident that he was following the wrong direction, and with the intention in view of

discovering the tracks of the party which had rescued or captured Virginia after he had been forced to

relinquish her, he set out in a totally new direction away from the river. His small woodcraft and little

experience in travelling resulted in his becoming completely confused, so that instead of returning to the spot

where he had last seen the girl, as he wished to do, he bore far to the northeast of the place, and missed

entirely the path which von Horn and his Dyaks had taken from the longhouse into the jungle and back.

All that day he urged his reluctant companions on through the fearful heat of the tropics until, almost

exhausted, they halted at dusk upon the bank of a river, where they filled their stomachs with cooling

draughts, and after eating lay down to sleep. It was quite dark when Bulan was aroused by the sound of

something approaching from up the river, and as he lay listening he presently heard the subdued voices of

men conversing in whispers. He recognized the language as that of the Dyaks, though he could interpret

Presently he saw a dozen warriors emerge into a little patch of moonlight. They bore a huge chest among

them which they deposited within a few paces of where Bulan lay. Then they commenced to dig in the soft

earth with their spears and parangs until they had excavated a shallow pit. Into this they lowered the chest,

covering it over with earth and sprinkling dead grass, twigs and leaves above it, that it might present to a

searcher no sign that the ground had recently been disturbed. The balance of the loose earth which would not

When all had been made to appear as it was before, one of the warriors made several cuts and scratches upon

the stem of a tree which grew above the spot where the chest was buried; then they hastened on in silence

As von Horn stood by the river's bank after his conversation with Virginia, he saw a small sampan

approaching from up stream. In it he made out two natives, and the stealthiness of their approach caused him

to withdraw into the shadow of a large prahu which was beached close to where he had been standing.

When the men had come close to the landing one of them gave a low signal, and presently a native came

"News has just reached us that Muda Saffir is alive," replied one of the men in the boat, "and that he sleeps

"We are men of his company and we have news for him," returned the speaker in the sampan. "Tell him that

The native on shore returned to the longhouse without replying. Von Horn wondered what the important

news for Muda Saffir might be, and so he remained as he had been, concealed behind the prahu.

Presently the old Malay came down to the water's edge very warily thoughand asked the men whom

"Ninaka," they said, "has murdered Barunda who was taking the rajah's treasure up to the rajah's

strongholdthe treasure which Ninaka had stolen after trying to murder the rajah and which Barunda had

recaptured. Now Ninaka, after murdering Barunda, set off through the jungle toward the river which leads to

Gunung Tebor, and Barunda's uncle followed him with what few men he had with him; but he sent us down

river to try and find you, master, and beg of you to come with many men and overtake Ninaka and punish

"Hasten back to the uncle of Barunda and tell him that as soon as I can gather the warriors I shall come and

punish Ninaka. I have another treasure here which I must not lose, but I can arrange that it will still be here

when I return for it, and then Barunda's uncle can come back with me to assist me if assistance is needed.

Also, be sure to tell Barunda's uncle never to lose sight of the treasure," and Muda Saffir turned and hastened

As the men in the sampan headed the boat's bow up stream again, von Horn ran along the jungle trail beside

the river and abreast of the paddlers. When he thought that they were out of hearing of the longhouse he

"I am the man to whom the chest belongs," replied von Horn. "If you will take me to Barunda's uncle before

Muda Saffir reaches him you shall each have the finest rifles that the white man makes, with ammunition

enough to last you a year. All I ask is that you guide me within sight of the party that pursues Ninaka; then

you may leave me and tell no one what you have done, nor will I tell any. What say you?"

The two natives consulted together in low tones. At last they drew nearer the shore.

"Will you give us each a bracelet of brass as well as the rifles?" asked the spokesman.

Von Horn hesitated. He knew the native nature well. To have acquiesced too readily would have been to have

"Only the rifles and ammunition," he said at last, "unless you succeed in keeping the knowledge of my

presence from both Barunda's uncle and Muda Saffir. If you do that you shall have the bracelets also."

Von Horn stepped aboard. He was armed only with a brace of Colts, and he was going into the heart of the

wild country of the head hunters, to pit his wits against those of the wily Muda Saffir. His guides were two

savage head hunting warriors of a pirate crew from whom he hoped to steal what they considered a

fabulously rich treasure. Whatever sins might be laid to the door of the doctor, there could be no question but

Von Horn's rash adventure had been suggested by the hope that he might, by bribing some of the natives with

Barunda's uncle, make way with the treasure before Muda Saffir arrived to claim it, or, failing that, learn its

exact whereabouts that he might return for it with an adequate force later. That he was taking his life in his

hands he well knew, but so great was the man's cupidity that he reckoned no risk too great for the

The two Dyaks, paddling in silence up the dark river, proceeded for nearly three hours before they drew in to

the bank and dragged the sampan up into the bushes. Then they set out upon a narrow trail into the jungle. It

so happened that after travelling for several miles they inadvertently took another path than that followed by

the party under Barunda's uncle, so that they passed the latter without being aware of it, going nearly half a

mile to the right of where the trailers camped a short distance from the bivouac of Ninaka.

In the dead of night Ninaka and his party had crawled away under the very noses of the avengers, taking the

chest with them, and by chance von Horn and the two Dyaks cut back into the main trail along the river

And so it was that Bulan was not the only one who watched the hiding of the chest.

When Ninaka had disappeared down the river trail Bulan lay speculating upon the strange actions he had

witnessed. He wondered why the men should dig a hole in the midst of the jungle to hide away the box which

he had so often seen in Professor Maxon's workshop. It occurred to him that it might be well to remember

just where the thing was buried, so that he could lead the professor to it should he ever see the old man again.

As he lay thus, half dozing, his attention was attracted by a stealthy rustling in the bushes nearby, and as he

watched he was dumbfounded to see von Horn creep out into the moonlight. A moment later the man was

followed by two Dyaks. The three stood conversing in low tones, pointing repeatedly at the spot where the

chest lay hidden. Bulan could understand but little of their conversation, but it was evident that von Horn was

Suddenly, without an instant's warning, von Horn drew his gun, wheeled, and fired pointblank, first at one

of his companions, then at the other. Both men fell in their tracks, and scarcely had the pungent odor of the

powder smoke reached Bulan's nostrils ere the white man had plunged into the jungle and disappeared.

Failing in his attempt to undermine the loyalty of the two Dyaks von Horn had chosen the only other way to

keep the knowledge of the whereabouts of the chest from Barunda's uncle and Muda Saffir, and now his

principal interest in life was to escape the vengeance of the head hunters and return to the longhouse before

There he could form a party of natives and set out to regain the chest after Muda Saffir and Barunda's uncle

had given up the quest. That suspicion should fall on him seemed scarcely credible since the only men who

knew that he had left the longhouse that night lay dead upon the very spot where the treasure reposed.

When Muda Saffir turned from the two Dyaks who had brought him news of the treasure he hastened to the

longhouse and arousing the chief of the tribe who domiciled there explained that necessity required that the

rajah have at once two war prahus fully manned. Now the power of the crafty old Malay extended from one

end of this great river on which the longhouse lay to the other, and though not all the tribes admitted

allegiance to him, yet there were few who would not furnish him with men and boats when he required them;

for his piratical cruises carried him often up and down the stream, and with his savage horde it was possible

When he had explained his wishes to the chief, the latter, though at heart hating and fearing Muda Saffir,

dared not refuse; but to a second proposition he offered strong opposition until the rajah threatened to wipe

The thing which the chief demurred to had occurred to Muda Saffir even as he walked back from the river

after conversing with the two Dyak messengers. The thought of regaining the treasure, the while he

administered punishment to the traitorous Ninaka, filled his soul with savage happiness. Now if he could but

once more possess himself of the girl! And why not? There was only the sick old man, a Chinaman and von

So he explained to the chief the plan that had so suddenly sprung to his wicked mind.

"Three men with parangs may easily quiet the old man, his assistant and the Chinaman," he said, "and then

The chief refused at first, pointblank, to be a party to any such proceedings. He knew what had happened to

the Sakkaran Dyaks after they had murdered a party of Englishmen, and he did not purpose laying himself

and his tribe open to the vengeance of the white men who came in many boats and with countless guns and

So it was that Muda Saffir was forced to compromise, and be satisfied with the chief's assistance in abducting

the girl, for it was not so difficult a matter to convince the head hunter that she really had belonged to the

Virginia slept in a room with three Dyak women. It was to this apartment that the chief finally consented to

dispatch two of his warriors. The men crept noiselessly within the pitch dark interior until they came to the

"Where is the white girl?" asked one of the men in a low whisper. "Muda Saffir has sent us for her. Tell her

that her father is very sick and wants her, but do not mention Muda Saffir's name lest she might not come."

The whispering awakened Virginia and she lay wondering what the cause of the midnight conference might

be, for she recognized that one of the speakers was a man, and there had been no man in the apartment when

Presently she heard some one approach her, and a moment later a woman's voice addressed her; but she could

not understand enough of the native tongue to make out precisely the message the speaker wished to convey.

The words "father," "sick," and "come," however she finally understood after several repetitions, for she had

picked up a smattering of the Dyak language during her enforced association with the natives.

The moment that the possibilities suggested by these few words dawned upon her, she sprang to her feet and

followed the woman toward the door of the apartment. Immediately without the two warriors stood upon the

verandah awaiting their victim, and as Virginia passed through the doorway she was seized roughly from

either side, a heavy hand was clapped over her mouth, and before she could make even an effort to rebel she

had been dragged to the end of the verandah, down the notched log to the ground and a moment later found

Since Virginia had come to the longhouse after her rescue from the ourang outangs, supposedly by von

Horn, Rajah Muda Saffir had kept very much out of sight, for he knew that should the girl see him she would

recognize him as the man who had stolen her from the Ithaca. So it came as a mighty shock to the girl when

she heard the hated tones of the man whom she had knocked overboard from the prahu two nights before, and

realized that the bestial Malay sat close beside her, and that she was again in his power. She looked now for

no mercy, nor could she hope to again escape him so easily as she had before, and so she sat with bowed head

in the bottom of the swiftly moving craft, buried in anguished thoughts, hopeless and miserable.

Along the stretch of black river that the prahu and her consort covered that night Virginia Maxon saw no

living thing other than a single figure in a small sampan which hugged the shadows of the shore as the two

Where von Horn and his two Dyak guides had landed, Muda Saffir's force disembarked and plunged into the

jungle. Rapidly they hastened along the well known trail toward the point designated by the two messengers,

to come upon the spot almost simultaneously with the party under Barunda's uncle, who, startled by the two

shots several hours previously, had been cautiously searching through the jungle for an explanation of them.

They had gone warily for fear that they might stumble upon Ninaka's party before Muda Saffir arrived with

reinforcements, and but just now had they discovered the prostrate forms of their two companions. One was

dead, but the other was still conscious and had just sufficient vitality left after the coming of his fellows to

whisper that they had been treacherously shot by the younger white man who had been at the longhouse

where they had found Muda Saffirthen the fellow expired without having an opportunity to divulge the

Now Bulan had been an interested witness of all that transpired. At first he had been inclined to come out of

his hiding place and follow von Horn, but so much had already occurred beneath the branches of the great

tree where the chest lay hidden that he decided to wait until morning at least, for he was sure that he had by

no means seen the last of the drama which surrounded the heavy box. This belief was strengthened by the

haste displayed by both Ninaka and von Horn to escape the neighborhood as quickly as possible, as though

Number Three and Number Twelve still slept, not having been aroused even by the shots fired by von Horn.

Bulan himself had dozed after the departure of the doctor, but the advent of Barunda's uncle with his

followers had awakened him, and now he lay wide eyed and alert as the second party, under Muda Saffir,

His interest in either party was but passive until he saw the khaki blouse, short skirt and trim leggins of the

captive walking between two of the Dyaks of Muda Saffir's company. At the same instant he recognized the

evil features of the rajah as those of the man who had directed the abduction of Virginia Maxon from the

Like a great cat Bulan drew himself cautiously to all fours every nerve and muscle taut with the excitement

of the moment. Before him he saw a hundred and fifty ferocious Borneo head hunters, armed with parangs,

spears and sumpitans. At his back slept two almost brainless creatureshis sole support against the awful

odds he must face before he could hope to succor the divinity whose image was enshrined in his brave and

The muscles stood out upon his giant forearm as he gripped the stock of his bull whip. He believed that he

was going to his death, for mighty as were his thews he knew that in the face of the horde they would avail

him little, yet he saw no other way than to sit supinely by while the girl went to her doom, and that he could

not do. He nudged Number Twelve. "Silence!" he whispered, and "Come! The girl is here. We must save her.

Both the creatures awoke and rose to their hands and knees without noise that could be heard above the

chattering of the natives, who had crowded forward to view the dead bodies of von Horn's victims. Silently

Bulan came to his feet, the two monsters at his back rising and pressing close behind him. Along the denser

shadows the three crept to a position in the rear of the natives. The girl's guards had stepped forward with the

others to join in the discussion that followed the dying statement of the murdered warrior, leaving her upon

For an instant a sudden hope of escape sprang to Virginia Maxon's mindthere was none between her and

the jungle through which they had just passed. Though unknown dangers lurked in the black and uncanny

depths of the dismal forest, would not death in any form be far preferable to the hideous fate which awaited

She had turned to take the first step toward freedom when three figures emerged from the wall of darkness

behind her. She saw the warcaps, shields, and war coats, and her heart sank. Here were others of the rajah's

partystragglers who had come just in time to thwart her plans. How large these men wereshe never had

seen a native of such giant proportions; and now they had come quite close to her, and as the foremost

stooped to speak to her she shrank back in fear. Then, to her surprise, she heard in whispered English; "Come

She thought the voice familiar, but could not place it, though her heart whispered that it might belong to the

young stranger of her dreams. He reached out and took her hand and together they turned and walked quickly

Scarcely had they covered half the distance before one of the Dyaks whose duty it had been to guard the girl

discovered that she was gone. With a cry he alarmed his fellows, and in another instant a sharp pair of eyes

With savage shouts the entire force of head hunters sprang in pursuit. Bulan lifted Virginia in his arms and

dashed on ahead of Number Twelve and Number Three. A shower of poisoned darts blown from half a

hundred sumpitans fell about them, and then Muda Saffir called to his warriors to cease using their deadly

Into the jungle dashed the four while close behind them came the howling pack of enraged savages. Now one

closed upon Number Three only to fall back dead with a broken neck as the giant fingers released their hold

upon him. A parang swung close to Number Twelve, but his own, which he had now learned to wield with

fearful effect, clove through the pursuing warrior's skull splitting him wide to the breast bone.

Thus they fought the while they forced their way deeper and deeper into the dark mazes of the entangled

vegetation. The brunt of the running battle was borne by the two monsters, for Bulan was carrying Virginia,

and keeping a little ahead of his companions to insure the girl's greater safety.

Now and then patches of moonlight filtering through occasional openings in the leafy roofing revealed to

Virginia the battle that was being waged for possession of her, and once, when Number Three turned toward

her after disposing of a new assailant, she was horrified to see the grotesque and terrible face of the creature.

A moment later she caught sight of Number Twelve's hideous face. She was appalled.

Could it be that she had been rescued from the Malay to fall into the hands of creatures equally heartless and

entirely without souls? She glanced up at the face of him who carried her. In the darkness of the night she had

not yet had an opportunity to see the features of the man, but after a glimpse at those of his two companions

Could it be that she had at last fallen into the hands of the dreaded and terrible Number Thirteen! Instinctively

she shrank from contact with the man in whose arms she had been carried without a trace of repugnance until

the thought obtruded itself that he might be the creature of her father's mad experimentation, to whose arms

The man shifted her now to give himself freer use of his right arm, for the savages were pressing more

closely upon Twelve and Three, and the change made it impossible for the girl to see his face even in the

But she could see the two who ran and fought just behind them, and she shuddered at her inevitable fate. For

should the three be successful in bearing her away from the Dyaks she must face an unknown doom, while

should the natives recapture her there was the terrible Malay into whose clutches she had already twice fallen.

Now the head hunters were pressing closer, and suddenly, even as the girl looked directly at him, a spear

passed through the heart of Number Three. Clutching madly at the shaft protruding from his misshapen body

the grotesque thing stumbled on for a dozen paces, and then sank to the ground as two of the brown warriors

sprang upon him with naked parangs. An instant later Virginia Maxon saw the hideous and grisly head

The man who carried her was now forced to turn and fight off the enemy that pressed forward past Number

Twelve. The mighty bull whip whirled and cracked across the heads and faces of the Dyaks. It was a

formidable weapon when backed by the Herculean muscles that rolled and shifted beneath Bulan's

suntanned skin, and many were the brown warriors that went down beneath its cruel lash.

Virginia could see that the creature who bore her was not deformed of body, but she shrank from the thought

of what a sight of his face might reveal. How much longer the two could fight off the horde at their heels the

girl could not guess; and as a matter of fact she was indifferent to the outcome of the strange, running battle

The country now was becoming rougher and more open. The flight seemed to be leading into a range of low

hills, where the jungle grew less dense, and the way rocky and rugged. They had entered a narrow canyon

when Number Twelve went down beneath a half dozen parangs. Again the girl saw a bloody head swung on

high and heard the fierce, wild chorus of exulting victory. She wondered how long it would be ere the

In the interval that the head hunters had paused to sever Number Twelve's head, Bulan had gained fifty yards

upon them, and then, of a sudden, he came to a sheer wall rising straight across the narrow trail he had been

following. Ahead there was no waya cat could scarce have scaled that formidable barrierbut to the right

he discerned what appeared to be a steep and winding pathway up the canyon's side, and with a bound he

There he turned, winded, to await the oncoming foe. Here was a spot where a single man might defy an army,

and Bulan had been quick to see the natural advantages of it. He placed the girl upon her feet behind a

protruding shoulder of the canyon's wall which rose to a considerable distance still above them. Then he

At his feet lay an accumulation of broken rock from the hillside above, and as a spear sped, singing, close

above his shoulder, the occurrence suggested a use for the rough and jagged missiles which lay about him in

such profusion. Many of the pieces were large, weighing twenty and thirty pounds, and some even as much as

fifty. Picking up one of the larger Bulan raised it high above his head, and then hurled it down amongst the

upclimbing warriors. In an instant pandemonium reigned, for the heavy boulder had mowed down a score of

Missile after missile Bulan rained down upon the struggling, howling Dyaks, until, seized by panic, they

turned and fled incontinently down into the depths of the canyon and back along the narrow trail they had

come, and then superstitious fear completed the rout that the flying rocks had started, for one whispered to

another that this was the terrible Bulan and that he had but lured them on into the hills that he might call forth

For a moment Bulan stood watching the retreating savages, a smile upon his lips, and then as the sudden

As Virginia Maxon saw the fine features of the giant where she had expected to find the grotesque and

hideous lineaments of a monster, she gave a quick little cry of pleasure and relief.

"Thank God!" she cried fervently. "Thank God that you are a manI thought that I was in the clutches of the

The smile upon the young man's face died. An expression of pain, and hopelessness, and sorrow swept across

his features. The girl saw the change, and wondered, but how could she guess the grievous wound her words

For a moment the two stood in silence; Bulan tortured by thoughts of the bitter humiliation that he must

suffer when the girl should learn his identity; Virginia wondering at the sad lines that had come into the

It was the girl who first spoke. "Who are you," she asked, "to whom I owe my safety?"

The man hesitated. To speak aught than the truth had never occurred to him during his brief existence. He

scarcely knew how to lie. To him a question demanded but one manner of replythe facts. But never before

had he had to face a question where so much depended upon his answer. He tried to form the bitter, galling

words; but a vision of that lovely face suddenly transformed with horror and disgust throttled the name in his

"Bulan," repeated the girl. "Bulan. Why that is a native name. You are either an Englishman or an American.

Virginia Maxon thought that he must have some good reason of his own for wishing to conceal his identity.

At first she wondered if he could be a fugitive from justicethe perpetrator of some horrid crime, who dared

not divulge his true name even in the remote fastness of a Bornean wilderness; but a glance at his frank and

noble countenance drove every vestige of the traitorous thought from her mind. Her woman's intuition was

"Then let me thank you, Mr. Bulan," she said, "for the service that you have rendered a strange and helpless

"Just Bulan," he said. "There is no need for Miss or Mister in the savage jungle, Virginia."

The girl flushed at the sudden and unexpected use of her given name, and was surprised that she was not

Bulan saw that he would get into deep water if he attempted to explain too much, and, as is ever the way,

discovered that one deception had led him into another; so he determined to forestall future embarrassing

queries by concocting a story immediately to explain his presence and his knowledge.

"I lived upon the island near your father's camp," he said. "I knew you allby sight."

"How long have you lived there?" asked the girl. "We thought the island uninhabited."

"It is strange," she mused. "I cannot understand it. But the monstershow is it that they followed you and

"It was the only way," said Bulan. "They were almost brainless they could understand nothing else, for

"They are dead, poor things," he replied, sadly. "Poor, hideous, unloved, unloving monstersthey gave up

their lives for the daughter of the man who made them the awful, repulsive creatures that they were."

"I mean that all have been killed searching for you, and battling with your enemies. They were soulless

creatures, but they loved the mean lives they gave up so bravely for you whose father was the author of their

"Poor things," murmured the girl, "but yet they are better off, for without brains or souls there could be no

happiness in life for them. My father did them a hideous wrong, but it was an unintentional wrong. His mind

was crazed with dwelling upon the wonderful discovery he had made, and if he wronged them he

contemplated a still more terrible wrong to be inflicted upon me, his daughter."

"It was his intention to give me in marriage to one of his soulless monstersto the one he called Number

Thirteen. Oh, it is terrible even to think of the hideousness of it; but now they are all dead he cannot do it

"Why do you loathe them so?" asked Bulan. "Is it because they are hideous, or because they are soulless?"

"Either fact were enough to make them repulsive," replied the girl, "but it is the fact that they were without

souls that made them totally impossible one easily overlooks physical deformity, but the moral depravity

that must be inherent in a creature without a soul must forever cut him off from intercourse with human

"And you think that regardless of their physical appearance the fact that they were without souls would have

"I am sure of it," cried Virginia. "I would know the moment I set my eyes upon a creature without a soul."

With all the sorrow that was his, Bulan could scarce repress a smile, for it was quite evident either that it was

"Not at all," he replied. "I am just curious as to how souls make themselves apparent. I have seen men kill

one another as beasts kill. I have seen one who was cruel to those within his power, yet they were all men

with souls. I have seen eleven soulless monsters die to save the daughter of a man whom they believed had

wronged them terriblya man with a soul. How then am I to know what attributes denote the possession of

"You are courageous and honorable and chivalrous those are enough to warrant the belief that you have a

soul, were it not apparent from your countenance that you are of the higher type of mankind," she said.

"I hope that you will never change your opinion of me, Virginia," said the man; but he knew that there lay

before her a severe shock, and before him a great sorrow when they should come to where her father was and

That he did not himself tell her may be forgiven him, for he had only a life of misery to look forward to after

she should know that he, too, was equally a soulless monster with the twelve that had preceded him to a

merciful death. He would have envied them but for the anticipation of the time that he might be alone with

As he pondered the future there came to him the thought that should they never find Professor Maxon or von

Horn the girl need never know but that he was a human being. He need not lose her then, but always be near

her. The idea grew and with it the mighty temptation to lead Virginia Maxon far into the jungle, and keep her

forever from the sight of men. And why not? Had he not saved her where others had failed? Was she not, by

Did he owe any loyalty to either her father or von Horn? Already he had saved Professor Maxon's life, so the

obligation, if there was any, lay all against the older man; and three times he had saved Virginia. He would be

very kind and good to her. She should be much happier and a thousand times safer than with those others who

As he stood silently gazing out across the jungle beneath them toward the new sun the girl watched him in a

spell of admiration of his strong and noble face, and his perfect physique. What would have been her

emotions had she guessed what thoughts were his! It was she who broke the silence.

Bulan, startled at the question, looked up from his reverie. The thing must be faced, then, sooner than he

thought. How was he to tell her of his intention? It occurred to him to sound her firstpossibly she would

"Why, yes, of course, I am," she replied. "My father will be half mad with apprehension, until he knows that I

am safe. What a strange question, indeed." Still, however, she did not doubt the motives of her companion.

"Oh, don't say such a thing," cried the girl. "It would be terrible. I should die of misery and fright and

loneliness in this awful jungle. Surely you can find your way to the river it was but a short march through

the jungle from where we landed to the spot at which you took me away from that fearful Malay."

The girl's words cast a cloud over Bulan's hopes. The future looked less roseate with the knowledge that she

would be unhappy in the life that he had been mapping for them. He was silentthinking. In his breast a riot

of conflicting emotions were waging the first great battle which was to point the trend of the man's

With the thought of losing her his desire for her companionship became almost a mania. To return her to her

father and von Horn would be to lose her of that there could be no doubt, for they would not leave her long

in ignorance of his origin. Then, in addition to being deprived of her forever, he must suffer the galling

It was a great deal to ask of a fledgling morality that was yet scarcely cognizant of its untried wings; but even

as the man wavered between right and wrong there crept into his mind the one great and burning question of

his lifehad he a soul? And he knew that upon his decision of the fate of Virginia Maxon rested to some

extent the true answer to that question, for, unconsciously, he had worked out his own crude soul hypothesis

which imparted to this invisible entity the power to direct his actions only for good. Therefore he reasoned

that wickedness presupposed a small and worthless soul, or the entire lack of one.

That she would hate a soulless creature he accepted as a foregone conclusion. He desired her respect, and that

fact helped him to his final decision, but the thing that decided him was born of the truly chivalrous nature he

possessedhe wanted Virginia Maxon to be happy; it mattered not at what cost to him.

The girl had been watching him closely as he stood silently thinking after her last words. She did not know

the struggle that the calm face hid; yet she felt that the dragging moments were big with the question of her

"We must eat first," he replied in a matteroffact tone, and not at all as though he was about to renounce his

life's happiness, "and then we shall set out in search of your father. I shall take you to him, Virginia, if man

"I knew that you could," she said, simply, "but how my father and I ever can repay you I do not knowdo

"Yes," said Bulan, and there was a sudden rush of fire to his eyes that kept Virginia Maxon from urging a

In truth she did not know whether to be angry, or frightened, or glad of the truth that she read there; or

mortified that it had awakened in her a realization that possibly an analysis of her own interest in this young

The constraint that suddenly fell upon them was relieved when Bulan motioned her to follow him back down

the trail into the gorge in search of food. There they sat together upon a fallen tree beside a tiny rivulet, eating

the fruit that the man gathered. Often their eyes met as they talked, but always the girl's fell before the open

Many were the men who had looked in admiration at Virginia Maxon in the past, but never, she felt, with

eyes so clean and brave and honest. There was no guile or evil in them, and because of it she wondered all the

"What a wonderful soul those eyes portray," she thought, "and how perfectly they assure the safety of my life

And the man thought: "Would that I owned a soul that I might aspire to live always near heralways to

When they had eaten the two set out once more in search of the river, and the confidence that is born of

ignorance was theirs, so that beyond each succeeding tangled barrier of vines and creepers they looked to see

On and on they trudged, the man often carrying the girl across the rougher obstacles and through the little

streams that crossed their path, until at last came noon, and yet no sign of the river they sought. The

combined jungle craft of the two had been insufficient either to trace the way that they had come, or point the

As the afternoon drew to a close Virginia Maxon commenced to lose heartshe was confident that they

were lost. Bulan made no pretence of knowing the way, the most that he would say being that eventually they

must come to the river. As a matteroffact had it not been for the girl's evident concern he would have been

glad to know that they were irretrievably lost; but for her sake his efforts to find the river were conscientious.

When at last night closed down upon them the girl was, at heart, terror stricken, but she hid her true state

from the man, because she knew that their plight was no fault of his. The strange and uncanny noises of the

jungle night filled her with the most dreadful forebodings, and when a cold, drizzling rain set in upon them

Bulan rigged a rude shelter for her, making her lie down beneath it, and then he removed his Dyak warcoat

and threw it over her, but it was hours before her exhausted body overpowered her nervous fright and won a

fitful and restless slumber. Several times Virginia became obsessed with the idea that Bulan had left her alone

there in the jungle, but when she called his name he answered from close beside her shelter.

She thought that he had reared another for himself nearby, but even the thought that he might sleep filled her

with dread, yet she would not call to him again, since she knew that he needed his rest even more than she.

And all the night Bulan stood close beside the woman he had learned to love stood almost naked in the

chill night air and the cold rain, lest some savage man or beast creep out of the darkness after her while he

The next day with its night, and the next, and the next were but repetitions of the first. It had become an

agony of suffering for the man to fight off sleep longer. The girl read part of the truth in his heavy eyes and

worn face, and tried to force him to take needed rest, but she did not guess that he had not slept for four days

At last abused Nature succumbed to the terrific strain that had been put upon her, and the giant constitution of

the man went down before the cold and the wet, weakened and impoverished by loss of sleep and insufficient

food; for through the last two days he had been able to find but little, and that little he had given to the girl,

It was on the fifth morning, when Virginia awoke, that she found Bulan rolling and tossing upon the wet

ground before her shelter, delirious with fever. At the sight of the mighty figure reduced to pitiable

inefficiency and weakness, despite the knowledge that her protector could no longer protect, the fear of the

jungle faded from the heart of the young girlshe was no more a weak and trembling daughter of an effete

civilization. Instead she was a lioness, watching over and protecting her sick mate. The analogy did not occur

to her, but something else did as she saw the flushed face and fever wracked body of the man whose appeal to

her she would have thought purely physical had she given the subject any analytic consideration; and as a

realization of his utter helplessness came to her she bent over him and kissed first his forehead and then his

"What a noble and unselfish love yours has been," she murmured. "You have even tried to hide it that my

position might be the easier to bear, and now that it may be too late I learn that I love youthat I have

always loved you. Oh, Bulan, my Bulan, what a cruel fate that permitted us to find one another only to die

For a week Professor Maxon with von Horn and Sing sought for Virginia. They could get no help from the

natives of the longhouse, who feared the vengeance of Muda Saffir should he learn that they had aided the

And always as the three hunted through the jungle and up and down the river there lurked ever near a handful

of the men of the tribe of the two whom von Horn had murdered, waiting for the chance that would give them

revenge and the heads of the three they followed. They feared the guns of the white men too much to venture

an open attack, and at night the quarry never abated their watchfulness, so that days dragged on, and still the

three continued their hopeless quest unconscious of the relentless foe that dogged their footsteps.

Von Horn was always searching for an opportunity to enlist the aid of the friendly natives in an effort to

regain the chest, but so far he had found none who would agree to accompany him even in consideration of a

large share of the booty. It was the treasure alone which kept him to the search for Virginia Maxon, and he

made it a point to direct the hunt always in the vicinity of the spot where it was buried, for a great fear

consumed him that Ninaka might return and claim it before he had a chance to make away with it.

Three times during the week they returned and slept at the longhouse, hoping each time to learn that the

natives had received some news of her they sought, through the wonderful channels of communication that

seemed always open across the trackless jungle and up and down the savage, lonely rivers.

For two days Bulan lay raving in the delirium of fever, while the delicate girl, unused to hardship and

exposure, watched over him and nursed him with the loving tenderness and care of a young mother with her

For the most part the young giant's ravings were inarticulate, but now and then Virginia heard her name

linked with words of reverence and worship. The man fought again the recent battles he had passed through,

and again suffered the long night watches beside the sleeping girl who filled his heart. Then it was that she

learned the truth of his selfsacrificing devotion. The thing that puzzled her most was the repetition of a

number and a name which ran through all his delirium "Nine ninety nine Priscilla."

She could make neither head nor tail of it, nor was there another word to give a clue to its meaning, so at last

from constant repetition it became a commonplace and she gave it no further thought.

The girl had given up hope that Bulan ever could recover, so weak and emaciated had he become, and when

the fever finally left him quite suddenly she was positive that it was the beginning of the end. It was on the

morning of the seventh day since they had commenced their wandering in search of the longhouse that, as

she sat watching him, she saw his eyes resting upon her face with a look of recognition.

"You are better, Bulan," she said. "You have been very sick, but now you shall soon be well again."

She did not believe her own words, yet the mere saying of them gave her renewed hope.

"Yes," replied the man. "I shall soon be well again. How long have I been like this?"

"And you have watched over me alone in the jungle for two days?" he asked incredulously.

"Had it been for life," she said in a low voice, "it would scarce have repaid the debt I owe you."

At first she did not quite realize what he meant, but presently the tired and hopeless expression of his eyes

"Because I love you, Virginia," he replied. "And because, when you know what I am, you will hate and

On the girl's lips was an avowal of her own love, but as she bent closer to whisper the words in his ear there

came the sound of men crashing through the jungle, and as she turned to face the peril that she thought

approaching, von Horn sprang into view, while directly behind him came her father and Sing Lee.

Bulan saw them at the same instant, and as Virginia ran forward to greet her father he staggered weakly to his

feet. Von Horn was the first to see the young giant, and with an oath sprang toward him, drawing his revolver

At the words Virginia turned back toward Bulan with a little scream of warning and of horror. Professor

Bulan drew himself to his full height, and though he wavered from weakness, yet he towered mighty and

At the same instant von Horn pulled the trigger. The giant's head fell back, he staggered, whirled about, and

Von Horn rushed close and pushing the girl aside pressed the muzzle of his gun to Bulan's temple, but an

avalanche of wrinkled, yellow skin was upon him before he could pull the trigger a second time, and Sing had

Moaning and sobbing Virginia threw herself upon the body of the man she loved, while Professor Maxon

hurried to her side to drag her away from the soulless thing for whom he had once intended her.

"You are murderers," she cried. "Cowardly murderers. Weak and exhausted by fever he could not combat

you, and so you have robbed the world of one of the noblest men that God ever created."

"Hush!" cried Professor Maxon. "Hush, child, you do not know what you say. The thing was a monster a

At the words the girl looked up quickly at her father, a faint realization of his meaning striking her like a

"No god created that," he said, with a contemptuous glance at the still body of the man at their feet. "He was

one of the creatures of your father's mad experimentsthe soulless thing for whose arms his insane

With a piteous little moan the girl turned back toward the body of the young giant. A faltering step she took

toward it, and then to the horror of her father she sank upon her knees beside it and lifting the man's head in

"I am not mad," she moaned, "not yet. I love him. Man or monster, it would have been all the same to me, for

"God!" he muttered. "What an awful punishment you have visited upon me for the sin of the thing I did."

The silence which followed was broken by Sing who had kneeled opposite Virginia upon the other side of

Bulan, where he was feeling the giant's wrists and pressing his ear close above his heart.

"Do'n cly, Linee," said the kindly old Chinaman. "Him no dlead." Then, as he poured a pinch of brownish

powder into the man's mouth from a tiny sack he had brought forth from the depths of one of his sleeves:

"He is not dead, Sing? He will live?" she cried. "I don't care about anything else, Sing, if you will only make

"You waitee, you dam flool," cried Sing. "I tellee lot more I know. You waitee I flixee him, and then, by

Von Horn took a menacing step toward the Chinaman, his face black with wrath, but Professor Maxon

"This has gone quite far enough, Doctor von Horn," he said. "It may be that we acted hastily. I do not know,

of course, what Sing means, but I intend to find out. He has been very faithful to us, and deserves every

Von Horn stepped back, still scowling. Sing poured a little water between Bulan's lips, and then asked

Professor Maxon for his brandy flask. With the first few drops of the fiery liquid the giant's eyelids moved,

"Yes," she replied. "They have told me, but it makes no difference. You have given me the right to say it,

Bulan, and I do say it now again, before them all I love you, and that is all there is that makes any

A look of happiness lighted his face momentarily, only to fade as quickly as it had come.

"No, Virginia," he said, sadly, "it would not be right. It would be wicked. I am not a human being. I am only

a soulless monster. You cannot mate with such as I. You must go away with your father. Soon you will forget

"You keepee still, Bulan," he said. "You wait till Sing tellee. You no mlonster. Mlaxon he no makee you.

Sing he find you in low bloat jus' outsidee cove. You dummy. No know nothing. No know namee. No know

"Sing he jes' hearee Mlaxon tellee Hornee 'bout Nlumber Thlirteen. How he makee him for Linee. Makee

Linee mally him. Sing he know what kindee fleaks Mlaxon makee. Linee always good to old Sing. Sing he

"Sing he takee you to Sing's shackee that night. Hide you till evlybody sleep. Then he sneak you in workee

shop. Kickee over vlat. Leaves you. Nex' mlorning Mlaxon makee blig hulabaloo. Dance up and downee.

"Anyway, you heap better for Linee than one Mlaxon's fleaks," he concluded, turning toward Bulan.

"Sing lies?" he hissed. "Mabbeso Sing lies when he ask what for you glet Bludleen steal tleasure. But Lajah

"Then you tellee Mlaxon Thlirteen steal Linee. You lie then and you knew you lie. You lie again when

"Then you make bad talkee with Lajah Saffir at longhouse. Sing hear you all timee. You tly getee tleasure

"Stop!" roared von Horn. "Stop! You lying yellow sneak, before I put a bullet in you."

"Both of you may stop now," said Professor Maxon authoritatively. "There have been charges made here that

cannot go unnoticed. Can you prove these things Sing?" he asked turning to the Chinaman.

"I plove much by Bludleen's lascar. Bludleen tell him all 'bout Hornee. I plove some more by Dyak chief at

"And it is true about this manthe thing that you have told us is true? He is not one of those created in the

"No, Mlaxon. You no makee fine young man like Blulan you know lat, Mlaxon. You makee One, Two,

Thlee all up to Twelve. All fleaks. You ought to know, Mlaxon, lat you no can makee a Blulan."

During these revelations Bulan had sat with his eyes fixed upon the Chinaman. There was a puzzled

expression upon his wan, bloodstreaked face. It was as though he were trying to wrest from the inner temple

of his consciousness a vague and tantalizing memory that eluded him each time that he felt he had it within

The girl kneeled close beside him, one small hand in his. Hope and happiness had supplanted the sorrow in

her face. She tore the hem from her skirt, to bandage the bloody furrow that creased the man's temple.

Professor Maxon stood silently by, watching the loving tenderness that marked each deft, little movement of

The revelations of the past few minutes had shocked the old man into stupefied silence. It was difficult,

almost impossible, for him to believe that Sing had spoken the truth and that this man was not one of the

creatures of his own creation; yet from the bottom of his heart he prayed that it might prove the truth, for he

saw that his daughter loved the man with a love that would be stayed by no obstacle or bound by no

The Chinaman's indictment of von Horn had come as an added blow to Professor Maxon, but it had brought

its own supporting evidence in the flood of recollections it had induced in the professor's mind. Now he

recalled a hundred chance incidents and conversations with his assistant that pointed squarely toward the

man's disloyalty and villainy. He wondered that he had been so blind as not to have suspected his lieutenant

Virginia had at last succeeded in adjusting her rude bandage and stopping the flow of blood. Bulan had risen

weakly to his feet. The girl supported him upon one side, and Sing upon the other. Professor Maxon

"I do not know what to make of all that Sing has told us, he said. "If you are not Number Thirteen who are

you? Where did you come from? It seems very strange indeed impossible, in fact. However, if you will

explain who you are, I shall be glad toahconsiderahpermitting you to pay court to my daughter."

"I do not know who I am," replied Bulan. "I had always thought that I was only Number Thirteen, until Sing

just spoke. Now I have a faint recollection of drifting for days upon the sea in an open boat beyond that all

is blank. I shall not force my attentions upon Virginia until I can prove my identity, and that my past is one

"You shall do nothing of the kind," cried the girl. "You love me, and I you. My father intended to force me to

marry you while he still thought that you were a soulless thing. Now that it is quite apparent that you are a

human being, and a gentleman, he hesitates, but I do not. As I have told you before, it makes no difference to

me what you are. You have told me that you love me. You have demonstrated a love that is high, and noble,

and selfsacrificing. More than that no girl needs to know. I am satisfied to be the wife of Bulan if Bulan

An arm went around the girl's shoulders and drew her close to the man she had glorified with her loyalty and

"Professor," said Bulan, "in the face of what Sing has told us, in the face of a disinterested comparison

between myself and the miserable creatures of your experiments, is it not folly to suppose that I am one of

them? Some day I shall recall my past, until that time shall prove my worthiness I shall not ask for Virginia's

hand, and in this decision she must concur, for the truth might reveal some insurmountable obstacle to our

marriage. In the meantime let us be friends, professor, for we are both actuated by the same desire the

The old man stepped forward and took Bulan's hand. The expression of doubt and worry had left his face.

"I cannot believe," he said, "that you are other than a gentleman, and if, in my desire to protect Virginia, I

"And now," said the professor, "let us return to the longhouse. I wish to have a few words in private with

you, von Horn," and he turned to face his assistant, but the man had disappeared.

"Hornee, him vamoose long time 'go," replied the Chinaman. "He hear all he likee."

Slowly the little party wound along the jungle trail, and in less than a mile, to Virginia's infinite surprise,

came out upon the river and the longhouse that she and Bulan had searched for in vain.

"And to think," she cried, "that all these awful days we have been almost within sound of your voices. What

"We had about given up hope," replied her father, "when Sing suggested to me that we cut across the

highlands that separate this valley from the one adjoining it upon the northeast, where we should strike other

tribes and from them glean some clue to your whereabouts in case your abductors had attempted to carry you

back to the sea by another route. This seemed likely in view of the fact that we were assured by enemies of

Muda Saffir that you were not in his possession, and that the river we were bound for would lead your captors

most quickly out of the domains of that rascally Malay. You may imagine our surprise, Virginia, when after

No sooner had the party entered the verandah of the longhouse than Professor Maxon made inquiries for

von Horn, only to learn that he had departed up stream in a prahu with several warriors whom he had engaged

to accompany him on a "hunting expedition," having explained that the white girl had been found and was

The chief further explained that he had done his best to dissuade the white man from so rash an act, as he was

going directly into the country of the tribe of the two men he had killed, and there was little chance that he

While they were still discussing von Horn's act, and wondering at his intentions, a native on the verandah

cried out in astonishment, pointing down the river. As they looked in the direction he indicated all saw a

graceful, white cutter gliding around a nearby turn. At the oars were white clad American sailors, and in the

As the cutter touched the bank the entire party from the longhouse, whites and natives, were gathered on the

shore to meet it. At first the officers held off as though fearing a hostile demonstration, but when they saw the

whites among the throng, a command was given to pull in, and a moment later one of the officers stepped

"I am Lieutenant May," he said, "of the U.S.S. New Mexico, flagship of the Pacific Fleet. Have I the honor to

"We have been to your island, Professor," continued the officer, "and judging from the evidences of hasty

departure, and the corpses of several natives there, I feared that some harm had befallen you. We therefore

cruised along the Bornean coast making inquiries of the natives until at last we found one who had heard a

rumor of a party of whites being far in the interior searching for a white girl who had been stolen from them

"The farther up this river we have come the greater our assurance that we were on the right trail, for scarcely

a native we interrogated but had seen or heard of some of your party. Mixed with the truth they told us were

"The imaginings of childish minds," said the professor. "However, why, my dear lieutenant, did you honor

The officer hesitated a moment before answering, his eyes running about over the assembly as though in

"Well, Professor Maxon, to be quite frank," he said at length, "we learned at Singapore the personnel of your

party, which included a former naval officer whom we have been seeking for many years. We came to your

When the lieutenant learned of the recent disappearance of the man he sought, he expressed his determination

to push on at once in pursuit; and as Professor Maxon feared again to remain unprotected in the heart of the

A few miles up the river they came upon one of the Dyaks who had accompanied von Horn, a few hours

earlier. The warrior sat smoking beside a beached prahu. When interrogated he explained that von Horn and

the balance of his crew had gone inland, leaving him to guard the boat. He said that he thought he could guide

Professor Maxon and Sing accompanied one of the officers and a dozen sailors in the wake of the Dyak

guide. Virginia and Bulan remained in the cutter, as the latter was still too weak to attempt the hard march

through the jungle. For an hour the party traversed the trail in the wake of von Horn and his savage

companions. They had come almost to the spot when their ears were assailed by the weird and blood curdling

yells of native warriors, and a moment later von Horn's escort dashed into view in full retreat.

At sight of the white men they halted in relief, pointing back in the direction they had come, and jabbering

excitedly in their native tongue. Warily the party advanced again behind these new guides; but when they

reached the spot they sought, the cause of the Dyaks' panic had fled, warned, doubtless, by their trained ears

The sight that met the eyes of the searchers told all of the story that they needed to know. A hole had been

excavated in the ground, partially uncovering a heavy chest, and across this chest lay the headless body of

"Mlaxon's tleasure," spoke up Sing Lee. "Hornee him tly steal it for long time."

"Treasure!" ejaculated the professor. "Bududreen gave up his life for this. Rajah Muda Saffir fought and

intrigued and murdered for possession of it! Poor, misguided von Horn has died for it, and left his head to

"But, Professor Maxon," said Lieutenant May, "men will suffer all these things and more for gold."

"Gold!" cried the professor. "Why, man, that is a box of books on biology and eugenics."

"My God!" exclaimed May, "and von Horn was accredited to be one of the shrewdest swindlers and

adventurers in America! But come, we may as well return to the cuttermy men will carry the chest."

"No!" exclaimed Professor Maxon with a vehemence the other could not understand. "Let them bury it again

where it lies. It and what it contains have been the cause of sufficient misery and suffering and crime. Let it

lie where it is in the heart of savage Borneo, and pray to God that no man ever finds it, and that I shall forget

On the morning of the third day following the death of von Horn the New Mexico steamed away from the

coast of Borneo. Upon her deck, looking back toward the verdure clad hills, stood Virginia and Bulan.

"Thank heaven," exclaimed the girl fervently, "that we are leaving it behind us forever."

"Amen," replied Bulan, "but yet, had it not been for Borneo I might never have found you."

"We should have met elsewhere then, Bulan," said the girl in a low voice, "for we were made for one another.

No power on earth could have kept us apart. In your true guise you would have found meI am sure of it."

"It is maddening, Virginia," said the man, "to be constantly straining every resource of my memory in futile

endeavor to catch and hold one fleeting clue to my past. Why, dear, do you realize that I may have been a

fugitive from justice, as was von Horn, a vile criminal perhaps. It is awful, Virginia, to contemplate the

"No, Bulan, you could never have been a criminal," replied the loyal girl, "but there is one possibility that has

been haunting me constantly. It frightens me just to think of itit is," and the girl lowered her voice as

though she feared to say the thing she dreaded most, "it is that you may have loved anotherthat that you

Bulan was about to laugh away any such fears when the gravity and importance of the possibility impressed

him quite as fully as it had Virginia. He saw that it was not at all unlikely that he was already a married man;

and he saw too what the girl now acknowledged, that they might never wed until the mystery of his past had

"There is something that gives weight to my fear," continued Virginia, "something that I had almost forgotten

in the rush and excitement of events during the past few days. During your delirium your ravings were, for

the most part, quite incoherent, but there was one name that you repeated many timesa woman's name,

But Virginia got no further. With a low exclamation of delight Bulan caught her in his arms.

"It is all right, dear," he cried. "It is all right. Everything has come back to me now. You have given me the

clue. Nine ninety nine Priscilla is my father's addressNine ninety nine Priscilla Avenue.

"I am Townsend J. Harper, Jr. You have heard of my father. Every one has since he commenced

consolidating interurban traction companies. And I'm not married, Virginia, and never have been; but I shall

"Oh, Bulan," cried the girl, "how in the world did you ever happen to come to that terrible island of ours?"

"I came for you, dear," he replied. "It is a long story. After dinner I will tell you all of it that I can recall. For

the present it must suffice you to know that I followed you from the railway station at Ithaca half around the

world for a love that had been born from a single glance at your sweet face as you passed me to enter your

"On my father's yacht I reached your island after trailing you to Singapore. It was a long and tedious hunt and

we followed many blind leads, but at last we came off an island upon which natives had told us such a party

as yours was living. Five of us put off in a boat to explorethat is the last that I can recall. Sing says he

"You may be the son of the great Townsend J. Harper, you have been the soulless Number Thirteen; but to