Image provided by: University of Nebraska-Lincoln Libraries, Lincoln, NE
About The Plattsmouth journal. (Plattsmouth, Nebraska) 1901-current | View Entire Issue (May 11, 1914)
MONDAY,. MAY 11, 1914.. PLATT8 MOUTH SERU-WEEKLY JOURNAL. PAGE 5. KRAI 'HHHK GMT?. CHAPTER XII. Burials. LS It wns now quite light the par ty, none of whom had eaten or slept since the previous room ing, begun to bestir tnemseives to prepare food. Tlie mutineers of the Arrow had landed a small supply of dried meats, canned soups, and vegetables, crack ers, flour, tea and coffee for the five they had marooned, and these were hurriedly drawn upon to satisfy the cravings of long famished appetites. The next task was to make the cabin habitable, and to this end it was first decided to remove the grewsoine relics of the tragedy which had taken place there on some bygone day. Professor Porter and Mr. Philander were deeply interested in examining the skeletons. The larger two they stated to have belonged to a male and female of one of the higher white races. The smallest skeleton was given but passing attention, ns its location in the crib left no doubt ns to its having been t!: infant offspring of this unhappy couple. As they were preparing the skeleton of the man for burial Clayton discov ered a massive ring which had evi dently encircled the man's finger at the time of his death, for one of the slender bones of the hand still lay within the golden bauWe. Picking it up to examine it, Clayton gave a cry of astonishment, for the ring bore the crest of the house of Greystoke. At the same time Jane Porter dis covered the books in the cupboard, and on opening to the fly leaf of one of them saw the name "John Clayton. London." In a second book, which she hurriedly examined, was the single name "Greystoke." "Why. Mr. Clayton." she cried, "what does this mean? Here are the names of some of your own people in these lKXks." "And here." he replied gravely. "Is the great ring of the house of Grey stoke which has been lost since my uncle. John Clayton, the former Lord Greystoke. disappeared, presumably lost at sea." "Hut how do you account for these things being here in this savage Af rican jungle?" exclaimed the girl. "There is but one way to account for it. Miss Porter," said Clayton. "The lnte Lord Greystoke v-as not drowned. ! He died here in this cabin, and this poor thing' upon the floor is all that is mortal of liiin." Then this must have been Lady Greystoke." said Jane Porter reverent ly, indicating the mass of bones upon the bed. "The beautiful Lady Alice." replied Clayton, "of whose many virtues and charms I often have heard my mother and father speak." With reverence and solemnity the bodies of the late Lord and Lady Grey stoke were buried beside their little African cabin, and between them was placed the tiny skeleton of the baby of Kala, the ape. As Mr. Philander was placing the frail bones of the infant in a bit of sail cloth he examined the skull minutely. Then he called Professor Porter to his side, and the two argued in low tones for several minutes "Most re.tiarkable, most remarkable." said Professor Porter. TJless me!" said Mr. Philander. "We must acquaint Mr. Clayton with our discovery at once." "Tut. tut. Mr. Philander; tut, tut!" remonstrated Professor Archimedes Q. Porter. "Let the dead past bury it3 dead." And so the white haired old man re peated the burial service ever this strange grave, while his four compan ions stool with bowed and uncovered heads about him. From the trees Tarzan of the apes watched this strange ceremony, but most of all he watched the sweet face and graceful figure of Jane Torter. In his savage, untutored breast new emotions were stirring. lie could not fathom them. lie wondered why he felt so great an interest in these people why he had gone to such pains to save the three men. But he did not wonder why he had torn Sabor from the tender flesh of the strange girl. lie knew that she was created to be pro tected and that he was created to pro tect her. When the grave had been filled with earth the little party turned back to ward the cabin, and Esmeralda, still weeping copiously for the two 6he had never keard of before and who had been dead twenty years, chanced to glance towaTd tho harbor. Instantly her. tears ceased; : "Look at (1cm low down white trash out dere!" she shrilled, pointing to ward the Arrow. "They all's a-dese-cratin" us right yere on dis yere per verted islanV Surely enough, the Arrow was being worked toward the open sea slowly through the harbor's entrance. "They promised to leave us firearms and ammunition." said ClayTon. ',TThe merciless beasts!" "It is the work of that fellow they call Snipes. I am sure." said Jane Por ter. "King was a scoundrel, but he had a little sense of humanity. If they had not killed him I know that he would have seen that we were proper ly provided for before they left us to our fate." "I regret that they did not visit us before sailing." said Professor Porter. "I had purjv)sed requesting them to leave the treasure with us. as I shall be a ruined man if that is lost." Jane looked at her father sadly. "Never mind, dear." she said. "It wouldn't have done any good, because It is solely for the treasure that they killed their officers and landed us upon this awful shore." Tarzan had seen the consternation depicted upon the faces of the little group as they witnessed the departure of the Arrow, so as the ship was a wonderful novelty to him in addition be determined to hasten out to the point of land at the north of the har bor's mouth and obtain a nearer view of the great boat, ns well as to Icarn if possible the direction of its flight. A very light land breeze was blow ing, and the ship had been worked through the harbor's mouth under fly ing jib. fore and main royals and mizzen spanker, but now that they had cleared the point every available shred of canvas was being spread that she might stand out to sea as handily ns possible. Tarzan watched the graceful move ments of the ship In rapt admiration and longed to be aboard her. Present ly his keen eyes caught the faintest suspicion of smoke on the far northern horizon, and he wondered what the cause of it might be. At about the same time the lookout on the Arrow must have discerned it. for In a few minutes Tarzan saw the sails being shifted. The ship came about, and presently he knew that she was coming back toward land. At last the ship came up directly Into the wind. The anchor was lowered: down came the sails. There was great scurrying about on deck. A boat was lowered, and into the boat a great chest was placed. Then a dozen sailors bent to the oars and pull ed rapidly toward the point where Tar zan crouched in the branches of a great tree. In the stern of the boat, as It drew nearer, Tarzan saw the rat faced man. It was but a few minutes later that the boat touched the beach. The men Jumped out and lifted the great chest to the sand. They were on the north side of the point, so that their presence was concealed from those at the cabin. The men argued angrily for a mo ment Then the rat faced one. with several companions, ascended the low bluff on which stood the tree that con cealed Tarzan. They looked about for several minutes. "Here is a good place." said the rat faced sailor. Indicating a spot beneath Tarzan's tree. "It is as good as any," replied one of his companions. "If they catch ns with the treasure aboard it will be con fiscated anyway. We might as well bury it here on the chance that some of us will escape the gallows to enjoy it later." The rat faced one now called to the men who had remained at the boat, and they came slowly up the bank carrying picks and shovels. "Flurry you!" cried Snipes. "Stow It!" retorted one of the men in a surly tone. "You're no admiral, you shrimp!" "I'm cap'n here, though. I'll have you to understand, yon swab!" shriek ed Snipes with a volley of oaths. "Steady, boys." cautioned one of the men who had not spoken before. "It ain't goin' to get us nothin by fightin' among ourselves." "Right enough," replied the sailor who had resented Snipes' autocratic tones. "But by the same token it ain't a-goin" to get nobody nothin' to put on airs iu this bloomin company neither." "You fellows dig here." said Snipes, indicating a spot beneath the tree. "And while you're diggiu' ret or kin be a-makin' of a map of the location so's we kin find it again. You. Tom and Bill, take a couple more down and fetch up the chest." "Wot are you a-goin' to do?" asked he of the previous altercation. "Just boss?" Rice Burroughs Copyright, 1912, by the Frank A. Munsey company. "Git busy there!" prowled Snipes. "You didn't think your cap'n was a-goin" to dig with a shovel, did you?" The men all looked up ancrily. None of them liked Snipes, and his disagree able show of authority since he had murdered King, the real head and ring leader of the mutineers, had only add ed fuel to the flames of their hatred. "Io you mean to say that you don't intend to take a shovel and lend a hand with this work?" asked Tarrant, the sailor who lvid before spoken. "No." replied Snipes simply, finger ing the butt of his revolver. "Then." shouted Tarrant. "If yon won't take a shovel you'll take n pick ax!" With the words he raised his pick a Dove n; neaa ana wiui a mignty blow buried the point in Snipes brain. Fur a moment the men stood silently looking at the result of their fellow's grim humor. Then one of them spoke. "Served the rat jolly well right." he said. One of the others commenced to ply his pick to the ground. The soil was 60ft. and he threw aside the pick and grasped a shovel; then the others join ed him. There was no further comment on the killing, but the ti:en worked in a better frame of mind than they had since Snipes had assumed command. When they had a trench of ample size to bury the chest Tarrant suggest ed that hey enlarge it and inter Snipes' body on top of the chest. "It might "clp fool any as 'appened to be diggln 'erabouts. "s? explained. The others saw the cunning of the suggestion, and so the trench was lengthened to accommodate the corpse, and in the center a deeper hole was excavated for the box. which was first wrapped in sailcloth and then low ered to its place, which brought Its top about a foot below the bottom of the rave. Earth was shoveled in and tamped down about the chest until the bottom of the grave showed level and uniform. Two of the men then rolled the rat faced corpse unceremoniously into the grave after first stripping it of its weapons and various other articles which the several members of the party coveted. They then filled the grave with earth and tramped upon it until it would hold no more. The balance of the loose earth was thrown far and wide and a mass of dead undergrowth spread in as natural a manner as possible over the new made grave to obliterate all signs of the ground having been disturbed. Their work done, the sailors returned to the small boat and pulled o!I rapidly toward the Arrow. The breeze had increased consider ably, and as the smoke upon the hori zon was now plainly discernible in considerable volume the mutineers lost no time in getting under full sail and bearing away toward the southwest. Tarzan wondered what the chest they had buried contained. If they did not wish it why did they not mere ly throw It into the water? That would have been much easier. Ah. he thought, but they do wish It. They have hidden it here because they intend returning for it later. lie dropped to the ground and com menced to examine the earth about the excavation. He was looking to see if these creatures had dropped anything which he might like to own. Soon he discovered a spade hidden by the un derbrush which they had laid upon the grave. He seized it and attempted to use It as he had seen the sailors do. It wa awkward work and hurt his bare feet, but he persevered until he had partial ly uncovered the body. This he drag ged from the' grave and laid to one side. 'Then' ho continued digging until he had unearthed the chest. This also he dragged to the side of the corpse. Then he filled in the smaller hole be low the grave, replaced the body and the earth around and above it, covered it over with underbrush and returned to the chest 'Four sailors had sweated beneath the burden of Its weight. Tarzan of the apes picked It up as though it had been empty and. with the spade slung to his back by a piece of rope, carried it off into the densest part of the jun gle. He could not well negotiate the trees with his awkward burden, but he kept to the trails and so made fairly good time. For several hours he traveled until he came to an impenetrable wall of matted and tangled vegetation. Then he took to the lower branches, and in another fifteen minutes be emerged into the amphitheater of the apes, where they met in council or to cele brate the rites of the dumdum. . . Near the center of the clearing and not far from the drum, or altar, he commenced to dig. This was harder work than turning np tho freshly ex cavated earth at the grave, but Tarzan of the apes was persevering, and so he kept at his labor until he was reward ed by seeing a hole sufficiently deep to receive the chest and effectually hide It from view. Now the natural curiosity, which is as common to men as to apes, prompt ed Tarzan to open the chest and exam ine its contents, but the heavy lock and massive iron bands baffled both his cunning and his immense strength, so that he was compelled to bury the chest without having his curiosity sat isfied. By the time Tarzan had hunted his way back to the vicinity of the cabin, feeding as he went, it was quite dark. Within the little building a light was burning, for Clayton had found an un opened tin of oil which had stood in tact for twenty years. The lamps also were still usable. As Tarzan approached the window nearest the door he saw that the cabin had, been divided into two. rooms by a rough partition of boughs cloth. In the front room were tly three men. the two older deep in argument while the younger, tilted back against the wall on an Improvised stool, was deeply engrossed in reading one of Tarzan's books. Tarzan was not particularly interest ed in the men. however, so he sought the other window. There was the girl, now beautiful her features! How del icate her snowy skin! She was writing at Tarzan's own table beneath the window. Upon a pile of grasses at the far side of the room lay the negress. asleep. For an hour Tarzan feasted his eyeg upon uer wmie slie wrote, tie Jonge. to speak to her. but dared not attempt, for he was convinced that she would not understand him, and he feared, too, that he might frighten her away. At length she arose, leaving her man uscript upon the table. She went to the bed upon which had been spread several layers of soft grasses. These she rearranged. Then she extinguish ed the lamp, and all within the cabin was wrapped in Cimmerian darkness. Cautiously Tarzan intruded his hand between the meshes of the lattice until his whole arm was within the cabin. Carefully he felt upon the desk. At last he grasped the paper upon which She Was Writing at Tarzan's Own Table Beneath the Window. Jane Porter had been writing and withdrew his hand, holding the pre cious treasure. Tarzan folded the sheets iu to a small parcel, which he tucked into the quiver with his arrows. Then he sped away into the jungle as softly and as noise lessly as a Bhadow. (To Be Continued.) Local News From Friday's Pally. J. W. Peters returned this morning from (ilenwood, where lie had been looking; after his work on the slate institution building's. Miss Anna Bernstein of Kansas City, a sister of I). Bernstein, and a nu'cn of Mrs. Simons of this city, is here making a short visit with her relatives. Miss Agnes l'tak arirved last evening from Alliance, Neb., where she has been teaching school, being railed home by the death of her sister, Margaret. Mrs. B. E. Lanmhear and little daughter, of Chicago, arrived in this city this morning for a visit with her parents, Mr. and Mrs. B. C. 11 jib? and family, and other relatives. Robert Sherwood departed this morning for Omaha, where he expects to meet his son. Victor, and accompany him to his home nl Grand Island for a visit there oer Sunday. LXX f?s&$r y :j jr-&saSSN X Are Buggies of Extraordinary Quality These buggies are made in the West for Western roads thus insuring you that this buggy will give better service and fill all requirements better than a buggy that is made for eastern roads. The lifth wheel on all Kratzer buggies are made from drop forged steel this is the grade of material that you can take to a blacksmith and have cut and welded. Kratzer buggies are made with either STEEL OR WOOD BODIES. For good and most durable buggies the Krat.er ranks second to none. Your time will be well spent by investigating this buggy. Rev. J. M. 'fades .,f the Liberty church wa a passenger this morning on the early Burlington train for Omaha, where be will spend a few hours with r lalivcs and friends. Harry New man departed this morning on No. 0 fur Oleuwond. where he will look alter the in terests of his bolllinir works and give the fowa citizens the oppor tunity to secure some of the products of his factory. Mrs. Luke L. Wiles ami Mrs. S. A. Wiles and Misses Margarile Wiles. Margaret Spanh r and Helen Wiles were passengers this morning for Omaha, where they will visit for the day taking in the sights of I lie metropolis. Mrs. Isaac K-diler and Mrs. Alice Keyler of York, York coun fr ' 1.. a hoy Ifiiii ilpllili bdl libvdi g m m m lay II-IB AI! mm Bros. Big American Shows 10 High Bigger and Belter Than a Circus 3 Big Fre Attract lores 3 20 Piece Concert Band Gives Free Concerts Daily The B isr orest as Ever . if Tl Ttilm Eastwood ty, I'e.in-yha'.iia. arrived in tin's city yesterday for a i-it at the home of Mr. and Mrs. John Hart man. Mrs. Kobler is a sister and Mrs. Keyler a daughter of Mr. Hartman, and no doiihl their visit will be a most enjoyable one. Clarence y. Staals, who has been here for the past ten days visiting his parents, Mr. and Mrs. Oenrge K. Slaatsr departed this morning for Lincoln, where be will resume bis stulies j, mu-i Mrs. 1. A. MoisiMgcr returned last evening from Omaha, where she has been for a short linm Nisitiag with friends. Mr. Mei singer came in fr.'m the farm lo meet his wife an-1 accompany her home. Oeorge 1. llaibei and Renbe:i Sline of I'nioii wen1 in tin' city ttsmowm lass Attractions 1 Amusement Enterprise That Visit eel Plattsmonth a io(:y for a few hours hikiirj af ter mailers of business, and while here called at the Journal ofiire for a short visit. Stephen Jorhim and C. J. Oabel, two of the enterprising farmers of Louisville prerine!, v.eie in ( In city today looking after some business matters and isiliag with tlnir friends. 1 A. Hild of near M nard was in the ciiy Salunliy aflenioou lor a few hours locking after some matters nf business. CASTOR I A For Infants and Children. The Kind You Have Always DcugM Bears the Signature of S 'I J ft - J J
