stood. Motionless as a statue he stood listening to the
faint sound.

Presently it ceased, to be followed by a shuffling noise that the
ape-man's trained ears could interpret as resulting from but a single
cause--the scraping of leather-shod feet upon the rounds of a ship's
monkey-ladder. And yet, as far as he could see, there was no ship
there--nor might there be one within a thousand miles.

As he stood thus, peering out into the darkness of the cloud-enshrouded
night, there came to him from across the water, like a slap in the
face, so sudden and unexpected was it, the sharp staccato of an
exchange of shots and then the scream of a woman.

Wounded though he was, and with the memory of his recent horrible
experience still strong upon him, Tarzan of the Apes did not hesitate
as the notes of that frightened cry rose shrill and piercing upon the
still night air. With a bound he cleared the intervening bush--there
was a splash as the water closed about him--and then, with powerful
strokes, he swam out into the impenetrable night with no guide save the
memory of an illusive cry, and for company the hideous denizens of an
equatorial river.

The boat that had attracted Jane's attention as she stood guard upon
the deck of the Kincaid had been perceived by Rokoff upon one bank and
Mugambi and the horde upon the other. The cries of the Russian had
brought the dugout first to him, and then, after a conference, it had
been turned toward the Kincaid, but before ever it covered half the
distance between the shore and the steamer a rifle had spoken from the
latter's deck and one of the sailors in the bow of the canoe had
crumpled and fallen into the water.

After that they went more slowly, and presently, when Jane's rifle had
found another member of the party, the canoe withdrew to the shore,
where it lay as long as daylight lasted.

The savage, snarling pack upon the opposite shore had been directed in
their pursuit by the black warrior, Mugambi, chief of the Wagambi.
Only he knew which might be foe and which friend of their lost master.

Could they have reached either the canoe or the Kincaid they would have
made short work of any whom they found there, but the gulf of black
water intervening shut them off from farther advance as effectually as
though it had been the broad ocean that separated them from their prey.

Mugambi knew something of the occurrences which had led up to the
landing of Tarzan upon Jungle I