e feared.
As much as I should like a shot at him I hope he stays away. Should he
ever deliberately lead a charge against us I wouldn't give much for our
chances if we happened to fail to bag him at the first rush."

But the white giant did not appear again to lead the baboons against
them, and finally the angry brutes themselves wandered off into the
jungle leaving the frightened safari in peace.

The next day the Swedes set out for Kovudoo's village bent on securing
possession of the person of the white girl whom Kovudoo's runner had
told them lay captive in the chief's village. How they were to
accomplish their end they did not know. Force was out of the question,
though they would not have hesitated to use it had they possessed it.
In former years they had marched rough shod over enormous areas, taking
toll by brute force even when kindliness or diplomacy would have
accomplished more; but now they were in bad straits--so bad that they
had shown their true colors scarce twice in a year and then only when
they came upon an isolated village, weak in numbers and poor in courage.

Kovudoo was not as these, and though his village was in a way remote
from the more populous district to the north his power was such that he
maintained an acknowledged suzerainty over the thin thread of villages
which connected him with the savage lords to the north. To have
antagonized him would have spelled ruin for the Swedes. It would have
meant that they might never reach civilization by the northern route.
To the west, the village of The Sheik lay directly in their path,
barring them effectually. To the east the trail was unknown to them,
and to the south there was no trail. So the two Swedes approached the
village of Kovudoo with friendly words upon their tongues and deep
craft in their hearts.

Their plans were well made. There was no mention of the white
prisoner--they chose to pretend that they were not aware that Kovudoo
had a white prisoner. They exchanged gifts with the old chief,
haggling with his plenipotentiaries over the value of what they were to
receive for what they gave, as is customary and proper when one has no
ulterior motives. Unwarranted generosity would have aroused suspicion.

During the palaver which followed they retailed the gossip of the
villages through which they had passed, receiving in exchange such news
as Kovudoo possessed. The palaver was long and tiresome, as these
native ceremonies always