re was a terrific explosion in the center of
the listening post. Numa gave a nervous start and attempted to break
away; but Tarzan held him and, leaping to his feet, ran forward,
dragging Numa after him. At the edge of the post he saw below him
but slight evidence that the position had been occupied at all,
for only a few shreds of torn flesh remained. About the only thing
that had not been demolished was a machine gun which had been
protected by sand bags.

There was not an instant to lose. Already a relief might be crawling
through the communication tunnel, for it must have been evident to
the sentinels in the Hun trenches that the listening post had been
demolished. Numa hesitated to follow Tarzan into the excavation;
but the ape-man, who was in no mood to temporize, jerked him roughly
to the bottom. Before them lay the mouth of the tunnel that led
back from No Man's Land to the German trenches. Tarzan pushed Numa
forward until his head was almost in the aperture, then as though
it were an afterthought, he turned quickly and, taking the machine
gun from the parapet, placed it in the bottom of the hole close
at hand, after which he turned again to Numa, and with his knife
quickly cut the garters that held the bags upon his front paws.
Before the lion could know that a part of his formidable armament
was again released for action, Tarzan had cut the rope from his
neck and the head bag from his face, and grabbing the lion from
the rear had thrust him partially into the mouth of the tunnel.

Then Numa balked, only to feel the sharp prick of Tarzan's knife
point in his hind quarters. Goading him on the ape-man finally
succeeded in getting the lion sufficiently far into the tunnel
so that there was no chance of his escaping other than by going
forward or deliberately backing into the sharp blade at his rear.
Then Tarzan cut the bags from the great hind feet, placed his
shoulder and his knife point against Numa's seat, dug his toes
into the loose earth that had been broken up by the explosion of
the bomb, and shoved.

Inch by inch at first Numa advanced. He was growling now and presently
he commenced to roar. Suddenly he leaped forward and Tarzan knew
that he had caught the scent of meat ahead. Dragging the machine
gun beside him the ape-man followed quickly after the lion whose
roars he could plainly hear ahead mingled with the unmistakable
screams of frightened men. Once again a grim smile touched the lips
of this m