Meriem and Bwana were sitting on the verandah together thefollowing day when a horseman appeared in the distance ridingacross the plain toward the bungalow. Bwana shaded his eyeswith his hand and gazed out toward the oncoming rider.He was puzzled. Strangers were few in Central Africa. Even theblacks for a distance of many miles in every direction were wellknown to him. No white man came within a hundred miles thatword of his coming did not reach Bwana long before the stranger.His every move was reported to the big Bwana--just what animalshe killed and how many of each species, how he killed them,too, for Bwana would not permit the use of prussic acid orstrychnine; and how he treated his "boys."

Several European sportsmen had been turned back to the coastby the big Englishman's orders because of unwarranted crueltyto their black followers, and one, whose name had long beenheralded in civilized communities as that of a great sportsman,was driven from Africa with orders never to return when Bwanafound that his big bag of fourteen lions had been made by thediligent use of poisoned bait.

The result was that all good sportsmen and all the nativesloved and respected him. His word was law where there hadnever been law before. There was scarce a head man from coastto coast who would not heed the big Bwana's commands inpreference to those of the hunters who employed them, and soit was easy to turn back any undesirable stranger--Bwana hadsimply to threaten to order his boys to desert him.

But there was evidently one who had slipped into thecountry unheralded. Bwana could not imagine who the approachinghorseman might be. After the manner of frontier hospitality theglobe round he met the newcomer at the gate, welcoming himeven before he had dismounted. He saw a tall, well knit man ofthirty or over, blonde of hair and smooth shaven. There was atantalizing familiarity about him that convinced Bwana that heshould be able to call the visitor by name, yet he was unable todo so. The newcomer was evidently of Scandinavian origin--both his appearance and accent denoted that. His manner wasrough but open. He made a good impression upon the Englishman,who was wont to accept strangers in this wild and savage countryat their own valuation, asking no questions and assuming the bestof them until they proved themselves undeserving of his friendshipand hospitality.

"It is rather unusual that a white man comes unheralded,"he said, as they walked together toward the field into which hehad suggested that the traveler might turn his pony. "My friends,the natives, keep us rather well-posted."

"It is probably due to the fact that I came from the south,"explained the stranger, "that you did not hear of my coming. I have seen no village for several marches."

"No, there are none to the south of us for many miles,"replied Bwana. "Since Kovudoo deserted his country I ratherdoubt that one could find a native in that direction under twoor three hundred miles."

Bwana was wondering how a lone white man could have madehis way through the savage, unhospitable miles that lay towardthe south. As though guessing what must be passing through theother's mind, the stranger vouchsafed an explanation.

"I came down from the north to do a little trading and hunting,"he said, "and got way off the beaten track. My head man,who was the only member of the safari who had ever beforebeen in the country, took sick and died. We could find no nativesto guide us, and so I simply swung back straight north. We havebeen living on the fruits of our guns for over a month. Didn't havean idea there was a white man within a thousand miles of us whenwe camped last night by a water hole at the edge of the plain. This morning I started out to hunt and saw the smoke from yourchimney, so I sent my gun bearer back to camp with the good newsand rode straight over here myself. Of course I've heard ofyou--everybody who comes into Central Africa does--and I'd bemighty glad of permission to rest up and hunt around here fora couple of weeks."

"Certainly," replied Bwana. "Move your camp up close tothe river below my boys' camp and make yourself at home."

They had reached the verandah now and Bwana was introducingthe stranger to Meriem and My Dear, who had just come fromthe bungalow's interior.

"This is Mr. Hanson," he said, using the name the man hadgiven him. "He is a trader who has lost his way in the jungleto the south."

My Dear and Meriem bowed their acknowledgments of the introduction. The man seemed rather ill at ease in their presence. His hostattributed this to the fact that his guest was unaccustomed tothe society of cultured women, and so found a pretext to quicklyextricate him from his seemingly unpleasant position and lead himaway to his study and the brandy and soda which were evidentlymuch less embarrassing to Mr. Hanson.

When the two had left them Meriem turned toward My Dear.

"It is odd," she said, "but I could almost swear that I hadknown Mr. Hanson in the past. It is odd, but quite impossible,"and she gave the matter no further thought.

Hanson did not accept Bwana's invitation to move his campcloser to the bungalow. He said his boys were inclined to bequarrelsome, and so were better off at a distance; and he,himself, was around but little, and then always avoided cominginto contact with the ladies. A fact which naturally aroused onlylaughing comment on the rough trader's bashfulness. He accompaniedthe men on several hunting trips where they found him perfectlyat home and well versed in all the finer points of big game hunting. Of an evening he often spent much time with the white foreman ofthe big farm, evidently finding in the society of this rougherman more common interests than the cultured guests of Bwanapossessed for him. So it came that his was a familiar figureabout the premises by night. He came and went as he saw fit,often wandering along in the great flower garden that was theespecial pride and joy of My Dear and Meriem. The first timethat he had been surprised there he apologized gruffly, explainingthat he had always been fond of the good old blooms of northernEurope which My Dear had so successfully transplanted in African soil.

Was it, though, the ever beautiful blossoms of hollyhocks andphlox that drew him to the perfumed air of the garden, or thatother infinitely more beautiful flower who wandered often amongthe blooms beneath the great moon--the black-haired, suntanned Meriem?

For three weeks Hanson had remained. During this time he saidthat his boys were resting and gaining strength after theirterrible ordeals in the untracked jungle to the south; but he hadnot been as idle as he appeared to have been. He divided hissmall following into two parties, entrusting the leadership ofeach to men whom he believed that he could trust. To them heexplained his plans and the rich reward that they would winfrom him if they carried his designs to a successful conclusion. One party he moved very slowly northward along the trail thatconnects with the great caravan routes entering the Sahara fromthe south. The other he ordered straight westward with orders tohalt and go into permanent camp just beyond the great riverwhich marks the natural boundary of the country that the bigBwana rightfully considers almost his own.

To his host he explained that he was moving his safari slowlytoward the north--he said nothing of the party moving westward. Then, one day, he announced that half his boys had deserted, fora hunting party from the bungalow had come across his northerlycamp and he feared that they might have noticed the reduced numbersof his following.

And thus matters stood when, one hot night, Meriem, unableto sleep, rose and wandered out into the garden. The Hon.Morison had been urging his suit once more that evening, and thegirl's mind was in such a turmoil that she had been unable to sleep.

The wide heavens about her seemed to promise a greater freedomfrom doubt and questioning. Baynes had urged her to tellhim that she loved him. A dozen times she thought that shemight honestly give him the answer that he demanded. Korak fastwas becoming but a memory. That he was dead she had come tobelieve, since otherwise he would have sought her out. She didnot know that he had even better reason to believe her dead,and that it was because of that belief he had made no effortto find her after his raid upon the village of Kovudoo.

Behind a great flowering shrub Hanson lay gazing at the starsand waiting. He had lain thus and there many nights before. For what was he waiting, or for whom? He heard the girlapproaching, and half raised himself to his elbow. A dozenpaces away, the reins looped over a fence post, stood his pony.

Meriem, walking slowly, approached the bush behind which thewaiter lay. Hanson drew a large bandanna handkerchief fromhis pocket and rose stealthily to his knees. A pony neigheddown at the corrals. Far out across the plain a lion roared. Hanson changed his position until he squatted upon both feet,ready to come erect quickly.

Again the pony neighed--this time closer. There was thesound of his body brushing against shrubbery. Hanson heardand wondered how the animal had gotten from the corral, for itwas evident that he was already in the garden. The man turnedhis head in the direction of the beast. What he saw sent him tothe ground, huddled close beneath the shrubbery--a man wascoming, leading two ponies.

Meriem heard now and stopped to look and listen. A momentlater the Hon. Morison Baynes drew near, the two saddledmounts at his heels.

Meriem looked up at him in surprise. The Hon. Morisongrinned sheepishly.

"I couldn't sleep," he explained, "and was going for a bit ofa ride when I chanced to see you out here, and I thought you'dlike to join me. Ripping good sport, you know, night riding.Come on."

Meriem laughed. The adventure appealed to her.

"All right," she said.

Hanson swore beneath his breath. The two led their horsesfrom the garden to the gate and through it. There theydiscovered Hanson's mount.

"Why here's the trader's pony," remarked Baynes.

"He's probably down visiting with the foreman," said Meriem.

"Pretty late for him, isn't it?" remarked the Hon. Morison."I'd hate to have to ride back through that jungle at nightto his camp."

As though to give weight to his apprehensions the distant lionroared again. The Hon. Morison shivered and glanced at thegirl to note the effect of the uncanny sound upon her. She appeared not to have noticed it.

A moment later the two had mounted and were moving slowlyacross the moon-bathed plain. The girl turned her pony's headstraight toward the jungle. It was in the direction of the roaringof the hungry lion.

"Hadn't we better steer clear of that fellow?" suggested theHon. Morison. "I guess you didn't hear him."

"Yes, I heard him," laughed Meriem. "Let's ride over andcall on him."

The Hon. Morison laughed uneasily. He didn't care to appearat a disadvantage before this girl, nor did he care, either, toapproach a hungry lion too closely at night. He carried his riflein his saddle boot; but moonlight is an uncertain light to shootby, nor ever had he faced a lion alone--even by day. The thoughtgave him a distinct nausea. The beast ceased his roaring now.They heard him no more and the Hon. Morison gained courage accordingly. They were riding down wind toward the jungle. The lion lay in alittle swale to their right. He was old. For two nights he hadnot fed, for no longer was his charge as swift or his spring asmighty as in the days of his prime when he spread terror amongthe creatures of his wild domain. For two nights and days he hadgone empty, and for long time before that he had fed onlyupon carrion. He was old; but he was yet a terrible engineof destruction.

At the edge of the forest the Hon. Morison drew rein. He hadno desire to go further. Numa, silent upon his padded feet, creptinto the jungle beyond them. The wind, now, was blowing gentlybetween him and his intended prey. He had come a long way insearch of man, for even in his youth he had tasted human fleshand while it was poor stuff by comparison with eland and zebrait was less difficult to kill. In Numa's estimation man was aslow-witted, slow-footed creature which commanded no respectunless accompanied by the acrid odor which spelled to themonarch's sensitive nostrils the great noise and the blinding flashof an express rifle.

He caught the dangerous scent tonight; but he was ravenousto madness. He would face a dozen rifles, if necessary, to fillhis empty belly. He circled about into the forest that he mightagain be down wind from his victims, for should they get hisscent he could not hope to overtake them. Numa was famished;but he was old and crafty.

Deep in the jungle another caught faintly the scent of manand of Numa both. He raised his head and sniffed. He cockedit upon one side and listened.

"Come on," said Meriem, "let's ride in a way--the forest iswonderful at night. It is open enough to permit us to ride."

The Hon. Morison hesitated. He shrank from revealing hisfear in the presence of the girl. A braver man, sure of his ownposition, would have had the courage to have refused uselesslyto expose the girl to danger. He would not have thought of himselfat all; but the egotism of the Hon. Morison required that hethink always of self first. He had planned the ride to get Meriemaway from the bungalow. He wanted to talk to her alone and farenough away so should she take offense at his purposed suggestionhe would have time in which to attempt to right himself in hereyes before they reached home. He had little doubt, of course,but that he should succeed; but it is to his credit that he didhave some slight doubts.

"You needn't be afraid of the lion," said Meriem, noting hisslight hesitancy. "There hasn't been a man eater around herefor two years, Bwana says, and the game is so plentiful thatthere is no necessity to drive Numa to human flesh. Then, hehas been so often hunted that he rather keeps out of man's way."

"Oh, I'm not afraid of lions," replied the Hon. Morison. "I wasjust thinking what a beastly uncomfortable place a forest isto ride in. What with the underbrush and the low branches andall that, you know, it's not exactly cut out for pleasure riding."

"Let's go a-foot then," suggested Meriem, and started to dismount.

"Oh, no," cried the Hon. Morison, aghast at this suggestion."Let's ride," and he reined his pony into the dark shadows ofthe wood. Behind him came Meriem and in front, prowlingahead waiting a favorable opportunity, skulked Numa, the lion.

Out upon the plain a lone horseman muttered a low curse ashe saw the two disappear from sight. It was Hanson. He hadfollowed them from the bungalow. Their way led in the directionof his camp, so he had a ready and plausible excuse should theydiscover him; but they had not seen him for they had not turnedtheir eyes behind.

Now he turned directly toward the spot at which they hadentered the jungle. He no longer cared whether he was observedor not. There were two reasons for his indifference. The firstwas that he saw in Baynes' act a counterpart of his ownplanned abduction of the girl. In some way he might turn thething to his own purposes. At least he would keep in touch withthem and make sure that Baynes did not get her. His other reasonwas based on his knowledge of an event that had transpired athis camp the previous night--an event which he had not mentionedat the bungalow for fear of drawing undesired attention to hismovements and bringing the blacks of the big Bwana into dangerousintercourse with his own boys. He had told at the bungalow thathalf his men had deserted. That story might be quickly disprovedshould his boys and Bwana's grow confidential.

The event that he had failed to mention and which now urgedhim hurriedly after the girl and her escort had occurred duringhis absence early the preceding evening. His men had been sittingaround their camp fire, entirely encircled by a high, thorn boma,when, without the slightest warning, a huge lion had leapedamongst them and seized one of their number. It had been solelydue to the loyalty and courage of his comrades that his lifehad been saved, and then only after a battle royal with thehunger-enraged beast had they been able to drive him offwith burning brands, spears, and rifles.

From this Hanson knew that a man eater had wandered intothe district or been developed by the aging of one of the manylions who ranged the plains and hills by night, or lay up in thecool wood by day. He had heard the roaring of a hungry lionnot half an hour before, and there was little doubt in his mindbut that the man eater was stalking Meriem and Baynes. He cursedthe Englishman for a fool, and spurred rapidly after them.

Meriem and Baynes had drawn up in a small, natural clearing.A hundred yards beyond them Numa lay crouching in the underbrush,his yellow-green eyes fixed upon his prey, the tip of his sinuoustail jerking spasmodically. He was measuring the distancebetween him and them. He was wondering if he dared venturea charge, or should he wait yet a little longer in the hopethat they might ride straight into his jaws. He was very hungry;but also was he very crafty. He could not chance losing his meatby a hasty and ill-considered rush. Had he waited the nightbefore until the blacks slept he would not have been forced togo hungry for another twenty-four hours.

Behind him the other that had caught his scent and that ofman together came to a sitting posture upon the branch of atree in which he had reposed himself for slumber. Beneath hima lumbering gray hulk swayed to and fro in the darkness. The beast in the tree uttered a low guttural and dropped to theback of the gray mass. He whispered a word in one of the greatears and Tantor, the elephant, raised his trunk aloft, swingingit high and low to catch the scent that the word had warned him of.There was another whispered word--was it a command?--and thelumbering beast wheeled into an awkward, yet silent shuffle,in the direction of Numa, the lion, and the stranger Tarmanganihis rider had scented.

Onward they went, the scent of the lion and his prey becomingstronger and stronger. Numa was becoming impatient. How muchlonger must he wait for his meat to come his way? He lashed histail viciously now. He almost growled. All unconscious of theirdanger the man and the girl sat talking in the little clearing.

Their horses were pressed side by side. Baynes had foundMeriem's hand and was pressing it as he poured words of loveinto her ear, and Meriem was listening.

"Come to London with me," urged the Hon. Morison. "I cangather a safari and we can be a whole day upon the wayto the coast before they guess that we have gone."

"Why must we go that way?" asked the girl. "Bwana andMy Dear would not object to our marriage."

"I cannot marry you just yet," explained the Hon. Morison,"there are some formalities to be attended to first--you donot understand. It will be all right. We will go to London. I cannot wait. If you love me you will come. What of the apesyou lived with? Did they bother about marriage? They love aswe love. Had you stayed among them you would have mated asthey mate. It is the law of nature--no man-made law canabrogate the laws of God. What difference does it make if welove one another? What do we care for anyone in the world besidesourselves? I would give my life for you--will you give nothingfor me?"

"You love me?" she said. "You will marry me when we havereached London?"

"I swear it," he cried.

"I will go with you," she whispered, "though I do not understandwhy it is necessary." She leaned toward him and he took her inhis arms and bent to press his lips to hers.

At the same instant the head of a huge tusker poked throughthe trees that fringed the clearing. The Hon. Morison and Meriem,with eyes and ears for one another alone, did not see or hear;but Numa did. The man upon Tantor's broad head saw thegirl in the man's arms. It was Korak; but in the trim figure ofthe neatly garbed girl he did not recognize his Meriem. He onlysaw a Tarmangani with his she. And then Numa charged.

With a frightful roar, fearful lest Tantor had come to frightenaway his prey, the great beast leaped from his hiding place. The earth trembled to his mighty voice. The ponies stood foran instant transfixed with terror. The Hon. Morison Baynes wentwhite and cold. The lion was charging toward them full in thebrilliant light of the magnificent moon. The muscles of the Hon.Morison no longer obeyed his will--they flexed to the urge of agreater power--the power of Nature's first law. They drove hisspurred heels deep into his pony's flanks, they bore the reinagainst the brute's neck that wheeled him with an impetuousdrive toward the plain and safety.

The girl's pony, squealing in terror, reared and plunged uponthe heels of his mate. The lion was close upon him. Only thegirl was cool--the girl and the half-naked savage who bestrodethe neck of his mighty mount and grinned at the exciting spectaclechance had staked for his enjoyment.

To Korak here were but two strange Tarmangani pursued by Numa,who was empty. It was Numa's right to prey; but one was a she. Korak felt an intuitive urge to rush to her protection.Why, he could not guess. All Tarmangani were enemies now.He had lived too long a beast to feel strongly the humanitarianimpulses that were inherent in him--yet feel them he did, forthe girl at least.

He urged Tantor forward. He raised his heavy spear and hurledit at the flying target of the lion's body. The girl's ponyhad reached the trees upon the opposite side of the clearing. Here he would become easy prey to the swiftly moving lion; butNuma, infuriated, preferred the woman upon his back. It wasfor her he leaped.

Korak gave an exclamation of astonishment and approval asNuma landed upon the pony's rump and at the same instant thegirl swung free of her mount to the branches of a tree above her.

Korak's spear struck Numa in the shoulder, knocking himfrom his precarious hold upon the frantically plunging horse.Freed of the weight of both girl and lion the pony raced aheadtoward safety. Numa tore and struck at the missile in hisshoulder but could not dislodge it. Then he resumed the chase.

Korak guided Tantor into the seclusion of the jungle. He didnot wish to be seen, nor had he.

Hanson had almost reached the wood when he heard the lion'sterrific roars, and knew that the charge had come. An instantlater the Hon. Morison broke upon his vision, racing like madfor safety. The man lay flat upon his pony's back hugging theanimal's neck tightly with both arms and digging the spurs intohis sides. An instant later the second pony appeared--riderless.

Hanson groaned as he guessed what had happened out of sight inthe jungle. With an oath he spurred on in the hope of drivingthe lion from his prey--his rifle was ready in his hand. And thenthe lion came into view behind the girl's pony. Hanson couldnot understand. He knew that if Numa had succeeded in seizingthe girl he would not have continued in pursuit of the others.

He drew in his own mount, took quick aim and fired. The lionstopped in his tracks, turned and bit at his side, then rolledover dead. Hanson rode on into the forest, calling aloud tothe girl.

"Here I am," came a quick response from the foliage of thetrees just ahead. "Did you hit him?"

"Yes," replied Hanson. "Where are you? You had a mightynarrow escape. It will teach you to keep out of the jungleat night."

Together they returned to the plain where they found the Hon.Morison riding slowly back toward them. He explained that hispony had bolted and that he had had hard work stopping him at all. Hanson grinned, for he recalled the pounding heels that hehad seen driving sharp spurs into the flanks of Baynes' mount;but he said nothing of what he had seen. He took Meriem upbehind him and the three rode in silence toward the bungalow.