world does he mean?" demanded Tom. "Of course we're not
going to leave any of our party behind!"

"Let me question him," suggested Mr. Illingway, and he began to talk
to the African in his own tongue. A rapid conversation followed, and
a look of amazement spread over the faces of the two missionaries,
as they listened.

"What is it?" asked Mr. Durban. "What does Tomba say?"

"Why the pygmies have two other white men in captivity," said Mr.
Illingway. "They were brought in yesterday, after you were driven
away. Two white men, or, rather a white man and a youth, according
to Tomba. They are held in one of the huts near where we were, but
tied so they couldn't escape in the confusion."

"How does Tomba know this?" asked Mr. Damon.

"He says," translated Mr. Illingway, after more questioning of the
black, "that he heard the red pygmies boasting of it after we had
escaped. Tomba says he heard them say that, though we were gone, and
could not be killed, or sacrificed, the other two captives would
meet that horrible fate."

"Two other white captives in the hands of the red imps!" murmured
Tom. "We must rescue them!"

"You're not going to turn back now, are you?" asked Mr. Durban.

"No, but I will as soon as I look the ship over. We'll come back
to-morrow. And we'll have to make a day attack or it will be too late
to save them. Two other white captives! I wonder who they can be."

There was a big surprise in store for Tom Swift.

CHAPTER XXV

THE ROGUE ELEPHANT--CONCLUSION

Early the next day the airship was again afloat. The night, what
little of darkness remained after the rescue, had been spent in the
clearing in the dense jungle. Some slight repairs had been made to
the craft, and it was once more in readiness to be used in battle
against the relentless savages.

"We can't wait for darkness," declared Tom. "In the first place
there isn't time, and again, we don't know in what part of the
village the other captives are. We'll have to hunt around."

"And that means going right down into the midst of the imps and
fighting them hand to hand," said Ned.

"That's what it means," assented Tom grimly, "but I guess the powder
bombs will help some."

Before starting they had prepared a number of improvised bombs,
filled with powder, which could be set off by percussion. It was the
plan to drop these down from the airship, into the midst of the
savages. When the bomb struck the ground, or even on the bodi