She sought until she had found the one in mind, which was
convex. Then she hurried to the ground and gathered a little pile
of powdered bark that was very dry, and some dead leaves and grasses
that had lain long in the hot sun. Near at hand she arranged a
supply of dead twigs and branches--small and large.
Vibrant with suppressed excitement she held the bit of glass above
the tinder, moving it slowly until she had focused the sun's rays
upon a tiny spot. She waited breathlessly. How slow it was! Were
her high hopes to be dashed in spite of all her clever planning?
No! A thin thread of smoke rose gracefully into the quiet air.
Presently the tinder glowed and broke suddenly into flame. Jane
clasped her hands beneath her chin with a little gurgling exclamation
of delight. She had achieved fire!
She piled on twigs and then larger branches and at last dragged a
small log to the flames and pushed an end of it into the fire which
was crackling merrily. It was the sweetest sound that she had heard
for many a month. But she could not wait for the mass of embers
that would be required to cook her hare. As quickly as might be she
skinned and cleaned her kill, burying the hide and entrails. That
she had learned from Tarzan. It served two purposes. One was the
necessity for keeping a sanitary camp and the other the obliteration
of the scent that most quickly attracts the man-eaters.
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