enthusiasm, fired solid
shot; but fortunately they had sufficient good judg-ment to train their
pieces on the open sea, so no harm was done. After this we landed--an
arduous task since each felucca carried but a single light dugout.

I learned from Ghak that the Thurian chieftain, Goork, had been
inclined to haughtiness, and had told Ghak, the Hairy One, that he knew
nothing of me and cared less; but I imagine that the sight of the fleet
and the sound of the guns brought him to his senses, for it was not
long before he sent a deputation to me, inviting me to visit him in his
village. Here he apologized for the treatment he had accorded me, very
gladly swore allegiance to the empire, and received in return the title
of king.

We remained in Thuria only long enough to arrange the treaty with
Goork, among the other details of which was his promise to furnish the
imperial army with a thousand lidi, or Thurian beasts of burden, and
drivers for them. These were to accompany Ghak's army back to Sari by
land, while the fleet sailed to the mouth of the great river from which
Dian, Juag, and I had been blown.

The voyage was uneventful. We found the river easily, and sailed up it
for many miles through as rich and wonderful a plain as I have ever
seen. At the head of navigation we disembarked, leaving a sufficient
guard for the feluccas, and marched the remaining distance to Sari.

Ghak's army, which was composed of warriors of all the original tribes
of the federation, showing how successful had been his efforts to
rehabilitate the empire, marched into Sari some time after we arrived.
With them were the thousand lidi from Thuria.

At a council of the kings it was decided that we should at once
commence the great war against the Mahars, for these haughty reptiles
presented the greatest obstacle to human progress within Pellucidar. I
laid out a plan of campaign which met with the enthusiastic
indorse-ment of the kings. Pursuant to it, I at once despatched fifty
lidi to the fleet with orders to fetch fifty cannon to Sari. I also
ordered the fleet to proceed at once to Anoroc, where they were to take
aboard all the rifles and ammunition that had been completed since
their departure, and with a full complement of men to sail along the
coast in an attempt to find a passage to the inland sea near which lay
the Mahars' buried city of Phutra.

Ja was sure that a large and navigable river connected the sea of
Phutra with t