Part 13 (1/2)
”An ivory zareba,” went on Montenay ”Made o' tusks, clear around the hut They were set with points up, curvin' out But I didn't get e and I was given a hut tochap, Mbopo, reported to an old, wizened witch-doctor as the boss I judged he was speakin' in my favor, but the old fellow shook his head an' waved a hand at the separate hut The whole crowd set up a yell o' 'Pongo!' Then they threw ht days, too Ye'll ht slaves an' mysel' in the party They treated oin' on On the ninth evenin'
they brought e was surrounded by the usual thorn zareba, an' the whole tribe was gathered just inside the gates, feastin' Mbopo an' three others tied me up an' carried round beside a small fire
”The old wizened chap ca iron which he stuck in the fire Then he pulled off my shi+rt an' did--this” Captain Mac slipped down his shi+rt collar and exposed the scarred shoulder that Critch had seen on the boat As the others gathered around with exclamations of astonishment, Burt could see that the scar was in the for loop took the place of the head-piece Besides this, the whole shoulder seemed a mass of cicatrices
”Yon's the shape o' the bit o' wood I found in Yusuf's packet,” went on Montenay, when Mr Wallace interrupted him in wonder
”Mac! Do you knohat that syo,” returned the other ”Froypt--”
”I should say it had!” ejaculated Mr Wallace, sinking back into his chair and staring at Montenay, who slipped his shi+rt back into position
”Why, that sign is the Egyptian cross, or ankh--the synia of Maat, the ancient Goddess of Truth!”
”So I found out, if ye'd given me time to finish,” replied Montenay drily ”Mbopo an' the rest staked me out there an' left me What wi' the burn an' the insects that settled down, I was pretty nigh gone inside an hour The fire was out, an' just after moonrise I heard a 'pad-pad' o'
steps near by Then a lirabbed me by the wounded shoulder That finished me for sure, and I fainted”
CHAPTER X
THE SACRED ANKH
”When I caht sure I was crazy I was lyin' in a palm-thatch hut, on a floor littered wi' bones an' refuse an'
sh heaven To one side was a little dish full o' palainst the wall, behind the la painted mu an' old”
”What!” Mr Wallace stared at the other, almost speechless The two boys, fascinated by the deadly earnestness of Montenay's recital, were pale with exciteo ahead, man I can talk later”
”I was still trussed up like a turkey, but I wriggled and squirot loose My shoulder was badly torn up,” went on Captain Mac, ”and I was nigh frantic wi' the pain A little o' the palht sure I was crazy I crawled to the door, an' found I was in the hut inside the ivory zareba
”The whole business one to my head, for I don't remember very hat happened then I knoent back to the mummy an' saw that his neck was torn open There was sorabbed at it Just then I heard so lion, standin' and lashi+n' his tail I re it at him The oil blazed up as the vessel save a roar, and I fainted again
”Next I re over me The poor fellow had come to the hut in the mornin' an' found me It seeo This Pongo was a combination o' the lion and ankh The ankh was the real God, but the lion had taken up livin' in the hut, so the lion was called Pongo and worshi+pped as the reg'lar deity In short, whoever had possession o' the ankh could boss the whole country Pongo, which was the lion, had carried me to the hut I was in possession o' the hut an' was the first who had ever escaped the sacrifice Therefore, I was sacred and in the way o' bein' a God ht off, ht Mbopo somy talk No, I didn't bother none whatever wi' the lion He showed up later an' took possession o' the hut again My shoulder was a long tione for a while Man, but I wanted to carry off that gold ankh an' that ivory! But the thing was iot a chance while I was out wi' hunters, and I lit out I worked my way out by strikin' a bunch of Arabs who treated me white That's the yarn”
There was a moment of silence Burt and Critch stared at Montenay in fascination Mr Wallace was looking down at the table Finally he glanced up and spoke, slowly
”Mac, you said so about proofs”
”I did that” Captain Mac unbuckled his belt, and took a srabbed so from the e, while the boys leaned over his shoulder in high excitement Froht gold Critch gave a gasp, but Mr Wallace turned over the scarabs and held theht as he exath ”Montenay, your proofs are pretty good
This see to one Ta-En-User, high priest of Maat I should say the scarabs belonged to about the Twenty-first Dynasty”
”Ye're no child yersel',” chuckled Captain Mac in delight ”That's just what they told
”Ye know ypt than I do, Wallace Froo these white pigrated from the east to where they are now On their way they struck a half-ruined ”City of the Gods,” as Mbopo called it They brought away a lot o' stuff from there, which they looked on as sacred All that's left is the mummy and the ankh Is that possible?”