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looked upon each child as a threat to her existence and a
prophecy of death, with the result that she loathed children from
birth; nor is this strange when the fact is considered that the
men chose as the mothers of their children the women whom
they particularly loathed and hated, since the custom of
destroying a woman who had borne three children deterred
them from mating with any female for whom they might have
entertained any degree of liking.
When not hunting or fishing the creatures squatted around
upon their haunches staring stupidly and sullenly at the floor of
their cavern.
"I should think/' said Tanar to Mow, "that, confronted by
such a life, you would welcome death in any form."
The Coripi shook his head. "I do not want to die," he said.
Why?9" demanded Tanar.
"I do not know," replied Mow. "I simply wish to live."
"Then I take it that you would like to escape from this cavern,
if you could," suggested Tanar.
"Of course I should like to escape," said Mow, "but if I try to
escape and they catch me they will kill me."
"They are going to kill you anyway," Tanar reminded him.
"Yes, I never thought of that," said Mow. "That is quite true;
they are going to kill me anyhow.9'
"Could you escape?" asked Tanar.
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"I could if I had someone to help me," said Mow.
"This cavern is filled with men who will help you," said Tanar.
"The Coripies from the grotto of Xax will not help me," said
Mow, "because if they escape there is no place where they may
go in safety. If Xax recaptures them they will be killed, and the
same is true if the ruler of any other grotto captures them."
"But there are men from other grottoes here," insisted Tanar,
"and there are Jude and I."
Mow shook his head. 'Twould not save any of the Coripies. I
hate them. They are all enemies from other grottoes.''
"But you do not hate me," said Tanar, "and I will help you,
and so will Jude."
"I need but one,'' said Mow,('but he must be very strong,
stronger than you, stronger than Jude.''
"How strong?" asked Tanar.
"He must be able to lift my weight," replied the Coripi.
"Look then," said Tanar, and seizing Mow he held him high
above his head.
When he had set him down upon the floor again the Coripi
gazed at Tanar for some time. "You are, indeed, strong," he said.
"Then let us make our plans for escape," said Tanar.
* 'Just you and I,'' said the Coripi.
"We must take Jude with us," insisted Tanar.
Mow shrugged his shoulders. "It is all the same to me," he
said. "He is not a Coripi, and if we become hungry and cannot
find other food we can eat him."
Tanar made no reply as he felt that it would be unwise to
voice his disgust at this proposal and he was sure that he and
Jude together could prevent the Coripi from succumbing to his
lust for flesh.
"You have noticed at the far end of the cavern, where the
shadows are so dense, that one may scarcely see a figure moving
there?" asked Mow.
"Yes, "said Tanar.
"There the dim shadows hide the rough, rocky walls and the
ceiling there is lost in total darkness, but in the ceiling is an
opening that leads through a narrow shaft into a dark tunnel."
"How do you know this?" asked Tanar.
"I discovered it once when I was hunting. I came upon a
strange tunnel leading from that along which I was making my
way to the upper world. I followed it to see where it led and I
came at last to the opening in the ceiling of this cavern, from
whence one may see all that takes place below without being
himself seen. When I was brought here as a prisoner I
recognized the spot immediately. That is how I know that one
may escape if he has proper help."
Explain,'' said Tanar.
"The wall beneath the opening is, as I have discovered,
inclined backward from the floor to a considerable height and so
rough that it can easily be scaled to a little ledge beneath the
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opening in the ceiling, but just so far. beneath that one may not
reach it unaided. If, however, I could lift you into the opening
you could, in turn, reach down and help me up/'
"But how may we hope to climb the wall without being seen
by the guards?" demanded Tanar.
"That is the only chance of capture that we shall have to take,"
replied Mow. "It is very dark there and if we wait until another
prisoner is brought and their attention is diverted we may be
able to succeed in reaching the opening in the ceiling before we
are discovered, and once there they cannot capture us."
Tanar discussed the plan with Jude, who was so elated at the
prospect of escape that he almost revealed a suggestion of
happiness.
And now commenced an interminable wait for the moment
when a new prisoner might be brought into the cavern. The
three conspirators made it a practice to spend most of their time
in the shadows at the far end of the cavern so that the guards
might become accustomed to seeing them there, and as no one
other than themselves was aware of the opening in the ceiling at
this point no suspicions were aroused, as the spot where they
elected to be was at the opposite end of the cavern from the
entrance, which was, in so far as the guards knew, the only
opening into the cavern.
Tanar, Jude and Mow ate and slept several times until it
began to appear that no more prisoners ever would be brought
to the cavern; but if no prisoners came, news trickled in and one
item filled them with such alarm that they determined to risk all
upon the hazard of a bold dash for freedom.
Some Coripies coming to relieve a part of the guard reported
that it had been with difficulty that Xax had been able to
suppress an uprising among his infuriated tribesmen, many of
whom had conceived the conviction that Xax was saving all of
the prisoners for himself.
The result had been that a demand had been made upon Xax
for an immediate feast of flesh. Perhaps already other Coripies
were on their way to conduct the unfortunate prisoners to the
great cavern of Xax, where they would be torn limb from limb by
the fierce, hunger-mad throng.
And, true enough, there had been time for but one hunger
before the party arrived to conduct them back to the main grotto
of the tribe.
"Now is the time," whispered Tanar to Mow and Jude, seeing
that the guard was engaged in conversation with the newcomers,
and in accordance with their previously made plan the three
started without an instant's hesitation to scale the far wall of the
cavern.
Upon a little ledge, twenty-five feet from the floor, Tanar
halted, and an instant later Mow and Jude stood upon either
side of him. Without a word the Coripi lifted Tanar to his
shoulders and in the darkness above Tanar groped for a hand-
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hold.
He soon found the opening into the shaft leading into the
tunnel above, and» too, he found splendid handholds there so
that an instant later he had drawn himself up into the opening
and was sitting upon a small ledge that entirely encircled it.
Bracing himself, he reached down and seized the hand of
Jude, who was standing upon Mow's shoulders, and drew the
Himean to the ledge beside him.
At that instant a great shouting arose below them, and
glancing down Tanar saw that one of the guards had discovered
them and that now a general rush of both guard" and prisoners
was being made in their direction.
Even as Tanar reached down to aid Mow to the safety of the
shaft's mouth, some of the Coripies were already scaling the wall
below them. Mow hesitated and turned to look at the enemies
clambering rapidly toward him.
The ledge upon which Mow stood was narrow and the footing
precarious. The surprise and shock of their discovery may have
unnerved him, or, in fuming to look downward he may have lost
his balance, but whatever it was Tanar saw him reel, topple and
then lunge downward upon the ascending Coripies, scraping
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