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Burroughs, Edgar Rice, 1875-1950

"Tarzan the Terrible"


First he selected a long, straight branch about two inches in
diameter at its base. This he cut from the tree with his knife,
removed the smaller branches and twigs until he had fashioned
a pole about ten feet in length. This he sharpened at the smaller
end. The staff finished to his satisfaction he looked down upon
the triceratops.
"Whee-oo!" he cried.
Instantly the beasts raised their heads and looked at him. From
the throat of one of them came faintly a low rumbling sound.
"Whee-oo!" repeated Tarzan and hurled the balance of the carcass
of the deer to them.
Instantly the gryfs fell upon it with much bellowing, one of them
attempting to seize it and keep it from the other: but finally
the second obtained a hold and an instant later it had been torn
asunder and greedily devoured. Once again they looked up at the
ape-man and this time they saw him descending to the ground.
One of them started toward him. Again Tarzan repeated the weird cry
of the Tor-o-don. The gryf halted in his track, apparently puzzled,
while Tarzan slipped lightly to the earth and advanced toward
the nearer beast, his staff raised menacingly and the call of the
first-man upon his lips.
Would the cry be answered by the low rumbling of the beast of
burden or the horrid bellow of the man-eater? Upon the answer to
this question hung the fate of the ape-man.


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