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03 - Lost Continent (Beyond Thirty) by Edgar Rice Burroughs · Lost Continent (Beyond Thirty)

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  Speaker 1: Chapter three of the Lost Continent. This LibriVox recording is
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  Speaker 1: in the public domain. Recording by Lucillifaro. The Lost Continent
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  Speaker 1: by Edgar Rice Burrows, Chapter three, The report of a
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  Speaker 1: gun blasted the silence of a dead devonport with startling abruptness.
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  Speaker 1: It came from the direction of the launch, and in
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  Speaker 1: an instant we three were running for the boat as
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  Speaker 1: fast as our legs would carry us. As we came
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  Speaker 1: in sight of it, we saw Dela cart a hundred
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  Speaker 1: yards inland from the launch, leaning over something which lay
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  Speaker 1: upon the ground. As we called to him, he waved
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  Speaker 1: his cap and, stooping, lifted a small deer for our inspection.
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  Speaker 1: I was about to congratulate him on his trophy, when
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  Speaker 1: we were startled by a horrid, half human, half beastial scream.
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  Speaker 1: A little head and to the right of us. It
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  Speaker 1: seemed to come from a clump of rank and tangled bush,
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  Speaker 1: not far from where Delocourt stood. It was a horrid,
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  Speaker 1: fearsome sound, the like of which never had befallen upon
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  Speaker 1: my ears. Before we looked in the direction from which
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  Speaker 1: it came. The smile had died from Delacourt's lips. Even
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  Speaker 1: at the distance we were from him, I saw his
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  Speaker 1: face go suddenly white, and he quickly threw his rifle
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  Speaker 1: to his shoulder. At the same moment, the thing that
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  Speaker 1: had given tongue to the cry moved from the concealing brushwood,
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  Speaker 1: far enough from us too to see it. Both Taylor
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  Speaker 1: and Snyder gave little gasps of astonishment and dismay. What
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  Speaker 1: is it, sir, asked the latter. The creature stood about
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  Speaker 1: the height of a tall man's waist, and was long
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  Speaker 1: and gaunt and sinuous, with a tawny coat striped with black,
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  Speaker 1: and with white throat and belly. In confirmation, it was
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  Speaker 1: similar to a cat, a huge cat, exaggerated colossal cat,
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  Speaker 1: with fiendish eyes and the most devilish cast of countenance.
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  Speaker 1: As it wrinkled its bristling snout and bared its great
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  Speaker 1: yellow fangs. It was pacing, or rather slinking, straight for Delcart,
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  Speaker 1: who had now leveled his rifle upon it. What is it, sir?
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  Speaker 1: Mumbut Snider again? And then a half forgotten picture from
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  Speaker 1: an old natural history sprang to my mind, and I
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  Speaker 1: recognized in the frightful beast the fearless Tigris of ancient Asia.
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  Speaker 1: Specimens of which had in former centuries been exhibited in
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  Speaker 1: the Western hemisphere. Snyder and Taylor were armed with rifles
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  Speaker 1: and revolvers, while I carried only a revolver. Seizing Snyder's
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  Speaker 1: rifle from his trembling hands, I called to Taylor to
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  Speaker 1: follow me, and together we ran forward, shouting to attract
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  Speaker 1: the beast's attention from delcart until we should all be
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  Speaker 1: quite close enough to attack with the greatest assurance of success.
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  Speaker 1: I cried to Delcarte not to fire until we reached
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  Speaker 1: his side, for I was fearful lest our small caliber,
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  Speaker 1: steel jacketed bullets should, far from killing the beast, tend
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  Speaker 1: merely to enrage it still further. But he misunderstood me,
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  Speaker 1: thinking that I had ordered him to fire. With the
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  Speaker 1: report of his rifle. The tigers stopped short in apparent surprise,
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  Speaker 1: then turned and bit savagely at its shoulder for an instant,
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  Speaker 1: after which it wheeled again toward delcart issuing the most
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  Speaker 1: terrific roars and screams, and launched itself with incredible speed
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  Speaker 1: toward the brave fellow, who now stood his ground, pumping
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  Speaker 1: bullets from his automatic rifle as rapidly as the weapon
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  Speaker 1: would fire. Taylor and I also opened up on the creature,
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  Speaker 1: and as it was broadside to us, it offered a
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  Speaker 1: splendid target. Though for all the impression we appeared to
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  Speaker 1: make upon the great cat, we might as well have
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  Speaker 1: been launching soap bubbles at it straight as a torpedo.
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  Speaker 1: It rushed for del Cart, and as Taylor and I
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  Speaker 1: stumbled on through the tall grass toward our unfortunate comrade,
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  Speaker 1: we saw the tiger rear upon him and crush him
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  Speaker 1: to the earth. Not a backward step had the noble
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  Speaker 1: dell Cart taken two hundred years of peace, had not
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  Speaker 1: sapped the red blood from his courageous line. He went
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  Speaker 1: down beneath that avalanche of bestial savagery, still working his
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  Speaker 1: gun and with his face to toward his antagonist. Even
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  Speaker 1: in the instant that I thought him dead, I could
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  Speaker 1: not help but feel a thrill of pride that he
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  Speaker 1: was one of my men, one of my class, a
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  Speaker 1: Pan American gentleman of birth, and that he had demonstrated
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  Speaker 1: one of the principal contentions of the Army and Navy adherents,
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  Speaker 1: that military training was necessary for the salvation of personal
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  Speaker 1: courage in the Pan American race. Which for generations had
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  Speaker 1: had to face no dangers more grave than those incident
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  Speaker 1: to ordinary life in a highly civilized community, safeguarded by
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  Speaker 1: every means, at the disposal of a perfectly organized and
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  Speaker 1: all powerful government utilizing the best that advanced science could suggest.
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  Speaker 1: As we ran toward Delcarte, both Taylor and I were
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  Speaker 1: struck by the fact that the beasts upon him appeared
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  Speaker 1: not to be mourning him, but lay quiet and motionless
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  Speaker 1: upon its prey. And when we were quite close, and
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  Speaker 1: the muzzles of our guns were at the animal's head,
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  Speaker 1: I saw the explanation of this sudden cessation of hostilities.
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  Speaker 1: Fearless Tigris was dead. One of our bullets, or one
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  Speaker 1: of the last that Delcarte fired, had penetrated the heart,
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  Speaker 1: and the beast had died even as it sprawled forward,
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  Speaker 1: crushing Delcarte to the ground. A moment later, with our assistance,
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  Speaker 1: the man had scrambled from beneath the carcass of his
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  Speaker 1: would be slayer, without a scratch to indicate how close
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  Speaker 1: to death he had been. Delcarte's buoyance was entirely unruffled.
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  Speaker 1: He came from under the tiger with a broad grin
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  Speaker 1: on his handsome face, nor could I perceive that a
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  Speaker 1: muscle trembled, or that his voice showed the least indication
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  Speaker 1: of nervousness or excitement. The termination of the adventure, we
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  Speaker 1: began to speculate upon the explanation of the presence of
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  Speaker 1: this savage brute at large, so great a distance from
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  Speaker 1: its native habitat my readings had taught me that it
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  Speaker 1: was particularly unknown outside of Asia, and that so late
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  Speaker 1: as the twentieth century at least, there had been no
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  Speaker 1: savage beasts outside captivity in England. As we talked, Snyder
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  Speaker 1: joined us, and I returned his riffle to him. Taylor
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  Speaker 1: and del Cart picked up the slain deer, and we
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  Speaker 1: all started down toward the launch, walking slowly. Del Cahart
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  Speaker 1: wanted to fetch the tiger's skin, but I had to
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  Speaker 1: deny him permission since we had no means to properly
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  Speaker 1: cure it. Upon the beach, we skinned the deer and
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  Speaker 1: cut away as much meat as we thought we could
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  Speaker 1: dispose of, and as we were again embarking to continue
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  Speaker 1: up the river for fresh water and fuel, we were
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  Speaker 1: startled by a series of screams from the bushes a
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  Speaker 1: short distance away another fell as tigris, said Taylor, or
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  Speaker 1: a dozen of them supplemented Delcarte, And even as he spoke,
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  Speaker 1: there leaped into sight one after another eight of the beasts,
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  Speaker 1: full grown, magnificent specimens. At the sight of us, they
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  Speaker 1: came charging down like infuriated demons. I saw that three
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  Speaker 1: rifles would be no match for them, and so I
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  Speaker 1: gave the word to put out from shore, hoping that
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  Speaker 1: the tiger, as the ancients called him, could not swim.
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  Speaker 1: Sure enough, they all halted at the beach, pacing back
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  Speaker 1: and forth, uttering fiendish cries and glaring at us in
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  Speaker 1: the most malevolent manner. As we motored away, we presently
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  Speaker 1: heard the calls of similar animals far inland. They seemed
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  Speaker 1: to be answering the cries of their fellows at the
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  Speaker 1: water's enir. And from the wide distribution and great volume
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  Speaker 1: of the sound, we came to the conclusion that enormous
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  Speaker 1: numbers of these beasts must roam the adjacent country. They
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  Speaker 1: have eaten up the inhabitants, murmured Snyder, shuddering, I imagine
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  Speaker 1: you are right. I agreed, for their extreme boldness and
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  Speaker 1: fearlessness in the presence of man would suggest either that
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  Speaker 1: man is entirely unknown to them, or that they are
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  Speaker 1: extremely familiar with him as their natural and most easily
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  Speaker 1: procured prey. But where did they come from? Asked Elkhart.
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  Speaker 1: Could they have traveled here from Asia? I shook my head.
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  Speaker 1: The thing was a puzzle to me. I knew that
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  Speaker 1: it was practically beyond reason to imagine that tigers had
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  Speaker 1: crossed the mountain ranges and rivers and all the great
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  Speaker 1: continent of Europe to travel this far from their native lairs,
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  Speaker 1: and entirely impossible that they should have crossed the English
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  Speaker 1: Channel at all. Yet here they were, and in great numbers.
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  Speaker 1: We continued up the tamar several miles, filled our casks,
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  Speaker 1: and then landed to cook some of our deer steak
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  Speaker 1: and have the first square meal that had fallen to
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  Speaker 1: our lot since the cold water deserted us. But scarce
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  Speaker 1: had we built our fire and prepared the meat for
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  Speaker 1: cooking than Snyder, whose eyes had been constantly roving about
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  Speaker 1: the landscape from the moment that we left the launch,
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  Speaker 1: touched me on the arm and pointed to a clump
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  Speaker 1: of bushes which grew a couple of hundred yards away.
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  Speaker 1: Half concealed behind their screening foliage, I saw the yellow
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  Speaker 1: and black of a big tiger, and as I looked,
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  Speaker 1: the beast stalked majestically toward us. A moment later he
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  Speaker 1: was followed by another and another, and it is needless
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  Speaker 1: to state that we beat a hasty retreat to the launch.
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  Speaker 1: The country was apparently infested by these huge carnivora, for
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  Speaker 1: after three other attempts to land and cook our food,
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  Speaker 1: we were forced to abandon the idea entirely, as each
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  Speaker 1: time we were driven off by hunting tigers. It was
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  Speaker 1: also equally impossible to obtain the necessary ingredients for our
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  Speaker 1: chemical fuel, and as we had very little left aboard,
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  Speaker 1: we determined to step our folding mast and proceed under sail,
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  Speaker 1: hoarding our fuel supply for use in emergencies. I may
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  Speaker 1: say that it was with no regret that we bid
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  Speaker 1: adieu to Tigerland, as we rechristened the Ancient Devon, and
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  Speaker 1: beating out into the channel, turned to the launch's nose
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  Speaker 1: northeast to round bolt Head and continue up the coast
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  Speaker 1: toward the Strait of Dover and the North Sea. I
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  Speaker 1: was determined to reach London as soon as possible. That
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  Speaker 1: we might obtain fresh clothing, meet with cultured people, and
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  Speaker 1: learn from the lips of Englishmen the secrets of the
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  Speaker 1: two centuries since the East had been divorced from the West.
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  Speaker 1: Our first stopping place was the Isle of Wight. We
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  Speaker 1: entered the silent about ten o'clock one morning, and I
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  Speaker 1: must confess that my heart sank as we came close
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  Speaker 1: to shore. No lighthouse was visible, though one was plainly
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  Speaker 1: indicated upon my map. Upon neither shore was sign of
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  Speaker 1: human habitation. We skirted the northern shore of the island
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  Speaker 1: in fruitless search of man, and then at last landed
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  Speaker 1: upon an eastern point where newport should have stood, but
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  Speaker 1: where only weeds and great trees entangled, wild wood rioted,
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  Speaker 1: and not a single man made thing was visible to
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  Speaker 1: the eye. Before landing, I had the men substitute soft
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  Speaker 1: bullets for the steel jacketed projectiles with which their belts
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  Speaker 1: and magazines were filled. Thus equipped, we felt upon more
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  Speaker 1: even terms with the tigers. But there was no sign
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  Speaker 1: of the tigers, and I decided that they must be
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  Speaker 1: confined to the main land. After eating, we set out
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  Speaker 1: in search of fuel, leaving Taylor to guard the launch.
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  Speaker 1: For some reason, I could not trust Snyder alone. I
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  Speaker 1: knew that he looked with disapproval upon my plan to
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  Speaker 1: visit England, and I did not know but what, at
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  Speaker 1: his first opportunity he might desert us, taking the launch
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  Speaker 1: with him, and attempt to return to Pan America. That
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  Speaker 1: he would be fool enough to venture it, I did
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  Speaker 1: not doubt. We had gone on inland for a mile
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  Speaker 1: or more and were passing through a park like wood
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  Speaker 1: when we came suddenly upon the first human beings we
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  Speaker 1: had seen since we sighted the English coast. There were
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  Speaker 1: a score of men in the party, hairy, half naked men.
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  Speaker 1: They were resting in the shade of a great tree.
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  Speaker 1: At the first sight of us, they sprang to their
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  Speaker 1: feet with wild yells, seizing long spears that had lain
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  Speaker 1: beside them as they rested for a matter of fifty yards.
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  Speaker 1: They ran from us as rapidly as they could, and
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  Speaker 1: then they turned and surveyed us for a moment, evidently
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  Speaker 1: emboldened by the scarcity of our numbers, that commenced to
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  Speaker 1: advance upon us, brandishing their spears and shouting horribly. They
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  Speaker 1: were short and muscular of beild, with long hair and beards,
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  Speaker 1: tangled and matted with filth. Their heads, however, were shapely,
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  Speaker 1: and their eyes, though fierce and warlike, were intelligent. Appreciation
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  Speaker 1: of these physical attributes came later, of course, when I
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  Speaker 1: had better opportunity to study the men at close range
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  Speaker 1: and under circumstances less fraught with danger and excitement. At
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  Speaker 1: the moment, I saw, and with unmixed wonder, only a
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  Speaker 1: score of wild savages charging down upon us, where I
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  Speaker 1: had expected to find a community of civilized and enlightened people.
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  Speaker 1: Each of us was armed with rifle, revolver, and cutlass.
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  Speaker 1: But as we stood shoulder to shoulder facing the wild men,
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  Speaker 1: I was loath to give the command to fire upon them,
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  Speaker 1: inflicting death or suffering upon strangers with whom we had
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  Speaker 1: no quarrel, and so I attempted to restrain them for
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  Speaker 1: the moment that we might parley with them. To this end,
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  Speaker 1: I raised my left hand above my head with the
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  Speaker 1: palm toward them, as the most natural gesture indicative of
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  Speaker 1: peaceful intentions, which occurred to me. At the same time,
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  Speaker 1: I called aloud to them that we were friends, though
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  Speaker 1: from their appearance there was nothing to indicate that they
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  Speaker 1: might understand Pan American or ancient English, which are of
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  Speaker 1: course practically identical. At my gesture and words, they ceased
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  Speaker 1: their shouting and came to a halt a few paces
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  Speaker 1: from us. Then, in deep tones, one who was in
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  Speaker 1: advance of the others, and whom I took to be
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  Speaker 1: the chief or leader of the party, replied in a
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  Speaker 1: tongue which, while intelligible to us, was so distorted from
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  Speaker 1: the English language from which it evidently had sprung that
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  Speaker 1: it was with difficulty that we interpreted it. Who are you,
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  Speaker 1: he asked, and from what country? I told him that
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  Speaker 1: we were from pan America. But he only shook his
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  Speaker 1: head and asked where that was. He had never heard
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  Speaker 1: of it, or of the Atlantic Ocean, which I told
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  Speaker 1: him separated his country from mine. It has been two
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  Speaker 1: hundred years, I told him since a pan American visited England. England.
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  Speaker 1: He asked, what is England? Why this is a part
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  Speaker 1: of England? I exclaimed, this is grupited. He assured me,
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  Speaker 1: I know nothing about England, and I have lived here
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  Speaker 1: all my life. It was not until long after that
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  Speaker 1: the derivation of Grubetin occurred to me. Unquestionably, it is
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  Speaker 1: a corruption of Great Britain, A name formerly given to
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  Speaker 1: the large island comprising England, Scotland and Wales. Subsequently, we
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  Speaker 1: heard it pronounced grab Britain and Britain. I then asked
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  Speaker 1: the fellow if he could direct us to Ride or Newport.
• 18:06
  Speaker 1: But again he shook his head and said that he
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  Speaker 1: never had heard of such countries. And when I asked
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  Speaker 1: him if there were any cities in this country, he
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  Speaker 1: did not know what I meant, never having heard the
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  Speaker 1: word cities. I explained my meanings as best I could
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  Speaker 1: by stating that by city I referred to a place
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  Speaker 1: where many people lived together in houses. Oh, he exclaimed,
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  Speaker 1: you mean a camp. Yes, there are two great camps here,
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  Speaker 1: East Camp and West Camp. We are from East Camp.
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  Speaker 1: The use of the word camp to describe a collection
• 18:46
  Speaker 1: of inhabitations naturally suggested war to me, and my next
• 18:51
  Speaker 1: question was as to whether the war was over and
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  Speaker 1: who had been victorious. No, he replied to this question,
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  Speaker 1: the war is not yet over, but it soon will be,
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  Speaker 1: and it will end as it always does, with the
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  Speaker 1: west Enders running away. We the east Enders are always victorious, no,
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  Speaker 1: I said, seeing that he referred to the petty tribal
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  Speaker 1: wars of his little Island. I mean the Great War,
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  Speaker 1: the war with Germany? Is it ended? And who was victorious?
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  Speaker 1: He shook his head impatiently. I never heard, he said,
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  Speaker 1: of any of these strange countries of which you speak.
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  Speaker 1: It seemed incredible, and yet it was true. These people,
• 19:44
  Speaker 1: living at the very seat of the Great War knew
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  Speaker 1: nothing of it, though but two centuries had passed since
• 19:52
  Speaker 1: to our knowledge it had been running in the height
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  Speaker 1: of its Titanic frightfulness. Or about them, and to us
• 20:01
  Speaker 1: upon the far side of the Atlantic still was a
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  Speaker 1: subject of keen interest. Here was a life long inhabitant
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  Speaker 1: of the Isle of Wight who never had heard of
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  Speaker 1: either Germany or England. I turned to him quite suddenly
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  Speaker 1: with a new question. What people live upon your mainland,
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  Speaker 1: I asked, and pointed in the direction of the Hants Coast.
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  Speaker 1: No one lives there, he replied. Long ago, it is said,
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  Speaker 1: My people dwelt across the waters upon that other land,
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  Speaker 1: but the wild beasts devoured them in such numbers that
• 20:44
  Speaker 1: finally they were driven here, paddling across upon logs and driftwood.
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  Speaker 1: Nor has any dared returned since, because of the frightful
• 20:54
  Speaker 1: creatures which dwell in that horrid country. Do know other
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  Speaker 1: peoples ever come to your cunor in ships? I asked.
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  Speaker 1: He never heard the word ship before and did not
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  Speaker 1: know its meaning. But he assured me that until we came,
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  Speaker 1: he had thought that there were no other peoples in
• 21:12
  Speaker 1: the world other than the grew Britons, who consist of
• 21:17
  Speaker 1: the east Enders and the west Enders of the ancient
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  Speaker 1: Isle of Wight. Assured that we were inclined to friendliness.
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  Speaker 1: Our new acquaintances led us to their village, or as
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  Speaker 1: they called it camp. There we found a thousand people,
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  Speaker 1: perhaps dwelling in rude shelters and living upon the fruits
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  Speaker 1: of the chase and such seafood as is obtainable close
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  Speaker 1: to shore. For they had no boats nor any knowledge
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  Speaker 1: of such things. Their weapons were most primitive, consisting of
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  Speaker 1: rude spears tipped with pieces of metal pounded roughly into shape.
• 21:58
  Speaker 1: They had no literature, no religion, and recognized no law
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  Speaker 1: other than the law of might. They produced fire by
• 22:07
  Speaker 1: striking a bit of flint and still together. But for
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  Speaker 1: the most part they ate their food raw. Marriage is
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  Speaker 1: unknown among them, and while they have the word mother,
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  Speaker 1: they did not know what I meant by father. The
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  Speaker 1: males fired for the favor of the females. They practice
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  Speaker 1: infanticide and kill the aged and physically unfit. The family
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  Speaker 1: consists of the mother and the children, the men dwelling
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  Speaker 1: sometimes in one hut and sometimes in another. Owing to
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  Speaker 1: their bloody jewels, they are always numerically inferior to the women,
• 22:46
  Speaker 1: so there is shelter for them all. We spent several
• 22:50
  Speaker 1: hours in the village, where we were objects of the
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  Speaker 1: greatest curiosity. The inhabitants examined our clothing and all our belongings,
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  Speaker 1: and are innumerable questions concerning the strange country from which
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  Speaker 1: we had come and the manner of our coming. I
• 23:08
  Speaker 1: questioned many of them concerning past historical events, but they
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  Speaker 1: knew nothing beyond the narrow limits of their island and
• 23:16
  Speaker 1: the savage primitive life they led there. London they had
• 23:21
  Speaker 1: never heard of, and they assured me that I would
• 23:26
  Speaker 1: find no human beings upon the mainland. Much saddened by
• 23:30
  Speaker 1: what I had seen, I took my departure from them,
• 23:34
  Speaker 1: and the three of us made our way back to
• 23:36
  Speaker 1: the launch, accompanied by about five hundred men, women, girls
• 23:41
  Speaker 1: and boys. As we sailed away, after procuring the necessary
• 23:46
  Speaker 1: ingredients of our chemical fuel. The Grubitans lined the shore
• 23:51
  Speaker 1: in silent wonder at the strange site of our dainty craft,
• 23:55
  Speaker 1: dancing over the sparkling waters, and watched us until we
• 23:59
  Speaker 1: were lost to their site. End of Chapter three.