La Grande evening observer., July 07, 1917, Image 3

SATURDAY, JULY 7, 1917.
LA GRANDE EVENINu OBSERVER.
PAGE THREE
, BURROUGHS
Copyright by Frank A. Munsey Co.
i SYNOPSIS
John Carter, who has been translated
twice to Mars, returns to earth and leaves
-the story of his adventures with his neph--w,
then goes again to Mars.
Carter aids a Martian warrior fighting' a
horJo of plant men. He discovers in the
warrior an old friend, Tars Tarkas.
Carter and Tarkas escape their enemies
fry entering- a hollow tree and making
their way to a cliff cava above.
They explore the cave, and through a
secret door enter a mysterious .chamber.
Unseen voices threaten them.
Thy engage In desperate fighting with
heraa, people who Inhabit that section,
.and meet an Imprisoned maid, Thuvla,
She tells of her captivity, shoots a thern
and Carter disguises himself In the them's
.gmrmenta.
Carter plans an escape from the mys
terious place. Thuvla leads the way to
ml other chambers.
Thetiierns are attacked by an aerial
fleet of Black Pirates, and during the bat
tle Carter, Tarkas, Thuvla and a young
anal prisoner, Carthoiis, escape In an air
ahlp. Carter discovers that Carthorls Is his
on by his Martian wife, Dejah Thorls,
princess. A fleet from Helium, Carter's
principality, meets his airship.
Carter Is accused of blasphemy by Zat
Arras, governor of Helium during Carter's
.absence. Carter Is condemned, but saved
by powerful friends.
"Carter Is escorted to his palace. He
learns that Dejah Thorls Is held a prisoner
by the Black Pirates.
Carter and his friends assemble a huge
air fleet and fy to the rescue of Dejah
Thorls.
A fearful aerial battle takes place. Car
tar Is also attacked by an air fleet under
Zat Arras, who Is defeated.
Carter attempts to reach Dejah Thorls
by subterranean passages, which are sud-
denly flooded, and great difficulties are
encountered.
Carter finds Dejah Thorls In a chamber,
hides her and plunges again in the battle.
' Tarkas charges and the battle Is won.
Dejah Thorls has been taken from her
hiding place by Issus; Goddess of the
Black Pirates, and imprisoned in a revolv
ing chamber. Carter cannot rescue her
. and Is borne away almost unconscious by
tils men.
"You are my prisoner, Zat Arrasl" I
. cried.
enemy todraw him as rnpiaiy ns pos
sible toward a ship of his hereditary
foemeu and by careful maneuvering to
force tlio two to engage, thus leaving
himself free to withdraw.
This stratagem worked to perfection,
and Just before the sun went down I
bad the satisfaction of seeing all that
was left of my once mighty fleet gath
ered nearly twenty miles southwest of
the still terrific battle between the
blacks and whites.
Our plan now was to attempt to
.make a combined assault upon Issus
at dawn of the following day.
Tars Tarkas, with his green war
riors, and Hor Vastus, with the red
men, guided by Xodar, were to laud
within the gardens of Issus or the
aurroundlng plains, while Carthoris,
Kantos Kan nnd I were to lead our
smaller force from the sea of Omean
through the pits beneath the temple,
which Carthoris knew so well.
1 now learned for the first time the
cause of my ten ships' retreat from
the mouth of the shaft It seemed
that when they had come upon the
shaft the navy of the Black Pirates
were already Issuing from its mouth.
Fully twenty vessels had emerged,
.and, though they gave battle immedi
ately in an effort to stem the tide that
rolled from the blnck pit, the odds
.against them were too great, and they
were forced to flee.
With great caution we approached
the shaft under cover of darkness. At
a distance of several miles I caused
the .fleet to be halted,and rom there
mm
Carthorls went 'ahead "alone upon a"
one man flier to reconnoltcr.
In perhaps half an hour he returned
to report that there was no sign of a
patrol boat or of tho enemy In any
form, and so we moved swiftly and
noiselessly forward once more toward
Omean. '
At the mouth of the shaft leading to
Omean we stopped again for a mo
ment for all the vessels to reach their
previously appointed stations; then
with the flagship I dropped quickly
Into the black depths, while one by
one the other vessels followed me In
quick succession.
We had decided to stake all on the
Chance that we would be able to reach
the temple of Issus by the subterra
nean way, and so we left no guard of
vessels at the shaft's mouth. Nor
would It have profited us any to have
done so, for We did not bare sufficient
force all told to have withstood the
vast navy of the Black Pirates bad
they returned to engage us.
CHAPTER XV.
Between Flood and Flsmes.
EOB the safety of our entrance
upon Omean we " depended
largely upon the very boldness
of it, believing' that it would
be some little time before the Black
Pirates on guard there would realize
that It was on enemy and not their
own returning fleet that was entering
the vault of the buried sea.
And such proved to be the case. In
fact, 400 of my fleet of 500 rested safe
iy upon the bosom of Omean before a
shot was fired.
The battle was short and hot, but
there could hare been but one out
come, for the Black Pirates In the
carelessness of fancied security had
left but a handful of ancient and ob
solete hulks to guard their mighty har
bor. It was at Carthoris' suggestion-that
we landed our prisoners under guard
upon a couple of the larger islands and
then towed the ships of the Black Pi
rates to the shaft, where we managed
to wedge a number of them securely
In the interior of the great welL
Then we turned on the buoyancy
rays in the balance of tbcm and let
them rise by themselves further to
block the passage to Omean as they
came in contact with the vessels al
ready lodged there. .
We now felt that it would be some
time at least before the returning
Black Pirates could reach the surface
of Omean and that we would have
ample opportunity to make for the
subterranean passages which led to
tssus.
As Carthoris alone knew the hidden
ways of the tunnels we could not di
vide the party and attack the temple
at several points at once, ns would
have been most desirable, and so it
wns decided that he lead us all as
quickly ns be could to a point as near
the temple's center as possible.
As we were about to leave the pool
and enter the corridors nn officer called
my attention to the waters upon which
the submarine floated. At first they
seemed, to be merely agitated as from
the movement of some great body be
neath the surface, and I at once con
jectured that another submarine was
rising to the surfnee In pursuit of us.
But presently it became apparent that
the level of the waters was rising not
with extreme rapidity, but very surely,
and that soon they would overflow the
sides of the pool and submerge the
floor of the chamber.
For a moment I did not fully grasp
the terrible Import of the slowly rising
waters. It was Carthoris who real
ized the full meaning of the thing Its
cause and the reason for it
"Haste!" he cried. "If we delay we
all are lost The pumps of Omean
have been stopped. They would drown
us like rats in n trap. We must reach
the upper levels of tho pits in advance
of the flood or we shall never reach
them. Come."
"Lead the way, Carthoris," I cried.
"We shall follow."
At my command the youth leaped
Into one of the corridors, and In col
umns of twos, and In good order, the
soldiers followed him, each company
entering the corridor only at the com
mand of its dwar, or captain.
I was the last to leave the chamber
of the submarine, and as I followed
the rear of the column toward the cor
ridor I moved through water to my
knees.
Tbe corridor, too, was flooded to the
same depth, for its floor was on a level
with the floor of the chamber from
which it led, nor was there any per
ceptible rise for many yards.
The march of tbe troops through
the corridor was as rapid as was con
sistent with the number of men that
moved through so narrow a passage,
but It .was jifit Atnplejo .Permit &Jo
galn"apprec',n"blybn the pursuing Tide.
Long ere tbe last of the column could
hope to reach the upper pits which lay
above the danger point, I was con
vinced that the waters would surge
after us In overwhelming volume and
that fully half the expedition would
be snuffed out.
As I cast about for some means of
saving aa many as possible of the
doomed men 1 saw a diverging corri
dor which seemed to rise at a ateep
angle at my right
Raising my voice to its utmost, I
shouted my 'Commands to the dwars
ahead of me.
"Call back the last twenty-five
utans," I shouted, "Here seems a way
of escape. Turn back and follow ma."
"Help, John Csrterl We are suffo
cating!" My orders were obeyed by nearer
thirty utans, so that some 3,000 men
came about and hastened into the
teeth of the flood to reach the corri
dor up which I directed them.
As the first dwar passed in with
his utau I cautioned blm to listen
closely for my commands and under
no circumstances to venture into the
open or leave tbe pits for the temple
proper until I should have come up
with him "or you know that I died
before I could reach you."
The officer saluted and left me. The
men filed rapidly past me and entered
the diverging corridor which I hoped
would lead to safety.
The water rose breast high. Men
stumbled, floundered and went down.
Many I grasped and set upon their
feet again, but alone the work was
greater than I could cope with. Sol
diers were being swept beneath the
boiling torrent never to rise.
At length the dwar of tbe tenth
utan took a stand beside me. He was
a valorous soldier. Our Tus by name,
and together we kept the now thor
oughly frightened troops in the sem
blance of order and rescued many that
would have drowned otherwise.
DJor Kantos, son of Kantos Kan,
and a padwar of the fifth utan, Joined
us when his utan reached the opening
through whleli the men were fleeing.
Thereafter not a man was lost of all
the hundreds that remained to pass
from tbe main corridor to tbe branch.
As tbe last utau was filing past us
the waters had risen until they surged
about our necks, but we clasped hands
and stood our ground until the last
man had passed to the comparative
safety of the new passageway. . Here
we found an immediate and steep as
cent, so that within a hundred yards
we bad reached a point above tbe
waters.
For a few minutes we continued rap
Idly up the steep grade, which I hoped
would soon bring us quickly to the up
per pits that led into the temple of
Issus. But I wns to meet with a cruel
disappointment .
Suddenly I heard a cry of "Fire!"
far ahead, followed almost at once by
cries of terror and tbe loud commands
of dwars and padwars. who were evi
dently attempting to direct their men
away from some grave danger. At
last the report came back to us:
"They bare fired the pits ahead!"
"We are hemmed In by flames in
front nnd flood behind!"
"Help, John Carter! We are suffo
cating!" Back npon us at the rear swept a
wave of dense smoke that sent us
stumbling and blinded into a choking
retreat.
There was naught to do other than
seek a new avenue of escape. The Ore
and smoke were to be feared n thou
sand times over the water, and so 1
seized upon the first gallery which led
out of and up from the suffocating
smoke that was engulfing us.
Again I stood to one side while the
soldiers hastened through on the new
way. Some 2,000 must have passed
at a rapid run when the stream censed,
but I wns not sure that all had been
rescued who had not passed the point
of origin of the flames, and so to as
sure myself that no poor devil was
left behind to die a horrible death un
succored I ran quickly up the gallery
In the direction of tho flameB, which I
Could now see burning with a dull glow
far ahead.
It was hot and stifling work, but at
last I reached a point where the fire lit
up the corridor sufficiently for me to
see-that no soldier of Helium lay be
tween me and the conflagration. What
was in it or upon the far side I could
not know, nor could any man have
passed through that seething bell of
chemicals and lived to learn.
Having satisfied my sense of duty, I
turned nnd ran rapidly back to tbe
corridor through which my men had
passed. To my horror, . however, I
found that my retreat in this direction
hnd been blocked. Across the mouth
of tho corridor Btood a massive steel
grating that had evidently been low
ercd from Its resting place above for
the purpose of effectually cutting off
my escape.
A 'thousand times I berated myself
for being drawn Into such a trap as I
might have known these pits easily
could be. Now I saw that It would
have been much better to have kept
our force Intact and made a concerted
attack upon tbe temple from tbe val
ley side, trusting to chance and our
great fighting ability to have over
whelmed the Black Pirates and com-,
pelted the safe delivery of Dejah Tho
rls to me.
The smoke from the fire was forcing
me farther and farther back down tbe
corridor toward the waters which I
could hear surging through the dark,
nesa.
With my men had gone the last
torch. Nor was this corridor lighted
by the radiance of phosphorescent rock
as were thoso of tbe lower levels. It
was this f ucttbat assured me that I
wns not far from the upper pita which
lio directly beneath the temple.
Finally I felt tbe lapping waters
about my feet The smoke was thick
behind me. My suffering was intense.
, There seemed but one thing to do
and that to choose the easier death
which confronted me, and so I moved
on down the corridor until the cold
waters of Omean closed about me and
I swam on through utter blackness to
wardwhat? Tbe instinct of self preservation is .
strong even when one, unafraid and In (
me possession or uis nignest reason
ing faculties knows that death posi
tive and unalterable lies Just ahead.
So I swam slowly on, waiting for
my head to touch the top of the cor
ridor, which would mean that I had
reached the limit of my flight and the
point where I must sink forever to an
unmarked grave.
To my surprise I ran against a blunk
wall before I reached a oiiit where
the waters came to the roof of tho cor
ridor. Could I be mistaken? I felt
round. No; I had come to (he main
corridor, and still there was a breath
ing space between tho surface of the
water and the rocky ceiling above.
Then I turned up the main corridor
In the direction that Carthoris and the
head of the column had passed a half
hour before. On and on I swan, my
heart growing lighter at every stroke,
for I knew that 1 was approaching
the point where there would be no
chance that tbe waters ahead could be
deeper than they were about me.
A few more strokes brought me to
a point where my feet touched the
floor, and soon thereafter I was above
the water level entirely and racing like
mad along the corridor, searching for
tho first doorway that would lead me
to Issus.
If I could not have Dejah Thorls
again I was at least determined to
avenge her death, nor would any life
satisfy me other than thut of the flend
incarnate who was the cause of such
immeasurable suffering upon Barsoom
Sooner than I had expected 1 came
to what appeared to me to be a sud
den exit into the temple above. It
was at the right side of the corridor,
which ran on probably to other en
trances to tbe pile above.
Without waiting to be again discov
ered and thwarted, I ran quickly up
tbe short, steep incline and pushed
open the doorway at its end.
Tbe portal swung slowly in, and be
fore it could be slammed against me I
sprang into the chamber beyond.
Though not yet dawn, tbe room was
brilliantly lighted. Its sole occupant
lay prone upon a low couch at the far
ther side, apparently In sleep.
Cautiously I approached tbe recum
bent figure on noiseless feet Closer
and closer I came to it, but I bad
crossed but little more than half the
chamber when the figure stirred nnd,
as I sprang, rose and faced me.
At first nn expression of terror over
spread the features of tho woman who
confronted me, then startled incredul
ity, hope, thanksgiving.
My heart pounded within my breast
as I advanced toward her. Tears came
to my eyes.
The words that would have poured
forth in a perfect torrent choked In mv
throat as I opened my arms and took
Into them once nioro the woman I
loved Dejah Thorls, princess of Heli
um. CHAPTER XVI.
Victory and Defeat.
OHN CARTER! John Car-
ter!" she sobbed, with her
dear bead upon my shoulder,
"Even now l can scarce be
lieve the witness of my own eyes.
When the girl. Thuvla. told me that
you had returned to Barsoom I listen
ed, but I could not understand, for It
seemed that such happiness would be
Impossible for one who had suffered
so In silent loneliness for all these long
years! At last, when I realized that it
was truth and then came to know the
awful place In which I was held pris
oner, I learned to doubt that even you
could reach me here.
"As the days passed hnd moon after
moon went by without bringing ever,
the faintest rumor of you, I resigned
myself to my fate. Aud now that you
have come scarce can I believe it.
"For an hour I have heard tho
Bounds of conflict within the palace. I
knew not what they meant, hut I have
hoped against hope that It might be
tbe men of Helium, headed by my
prlnee.
"And tell me what of Curthoris, our
son?"
"He was with me less than an hour
since, Dejah Thorls." 1 replied. "It
must have been he whoso men you
have heard battling within the pre
cincts of the temple.
"Where Is Issus?" I asked suddenly.
Dejah Thorls shrugged her shoul
ders. "She sent me under gunrd to this
room Just before tho lighting began
within thetemj)lo walls, She said that
she" would seifil Tor mo later. '""She
seemed very augry and somewhat fear
ful. Never have I seen her act In so
uncortuln and almost terrified a man
ner. "Now I know that it must have been
because she had learned that John Car
ter, prince of Helium, was approach
ing to demand an accounting of ber
for the imprisonment of his prin
cess." - ,
The sounds of conflict, the clash of
arms, the shouting and the hurrying
of many feet came to us from various
parts of the temple. I knew that I
was needed there, but I dared not
leave Dejah Thorls, nor dared I take
her with me Into the turmoil and dan.
ger of battle.
At last I bethought me of tbe pits
from which I had Just emerged. Why
not secrete her there until I could re
turn and fetch her away in safety and
forever from this awful place? I ex
plained my plan to ber. ,
For a moment she clung to me.
"I cannot bear to be parted from
you now even for a moment, John Car
ter," she said. "I shudder at the
thought of being alone again where
that terrible creature might discover
me. You do not know her.
"None can imagine her ferocious
cruelty who has not witnessed her
dally acta for over half a year. It
has taken me nearly all this time to
realize even tbe things that I have
seen with my own eyes."
"I shall not leave you, then, my
princess," I replied.
She waa silent for a moment; then
she drew my face to hers aud kissed
me.
"Go, John Carter," she said. "Our
son is there and the soldiers of Helium,
fighting for the Princess of Helium.
Where theyare you should be.
"I must not think of myself now,
but of them aud of my husband's duty.
I may not stand in the way of that
Hide me In the pits and go."
I led her to tho door through which
I had entered the chamber from be
low. There I pressed ber dear form to
me, and then, though it tore my heart
to do it and filled me only with the
blackest; shadows of terrible forebod
ing, I guided ber across tbe threshold,
kissed her once again and closed the
door upon her.
Without hesitating longer I hurried
from the chamber in tbe direction of
the greatest tumult Scarce half a
dozen chambers bad I. traversed before
I came upon the theater of a fierce
struggle.
Tbe blacks were masBed at the en
trance to a great chamber, where they
were attempting to block the further
progress of a body of red men toward
the inner sacred precincts of tbe tern
pie. As I struck the first blow I cried
aloud, "For Helium!" And then I
rained cut after cut upon the sur
prised warriors, while the reds with
out took, bear); at the sound of my
voice and with snouts or "Joun carter!
John Carter!" redoubled their efforts
so effectually that before the blacks
"I shall not leava you, then, my prin
cess," I repliod.
could recover from their temporary de
moralization their1 ranks were broken
and the red men had burst into the
chamber.
Five buudrcd men fought there that
day, tbe black man against the red.
No man asked quarter or gave it As
though by common consent they fought
as though to determine once and for
all their right to live In accordance
with tho law of the survival of the
fittest
I think we all knew that upon the
outcome of this bnttle would bingo for
ever tbe relative positions of tbeso two
races upon Ilnrsoom. It was a battle
between the old and the new, but not
for once did I question the outcome
of It
With Carthoris at my side I fought
for tho red men of Barsoom and from
their total emancipation from the
throttling hondogo of a hideous super
stltlon. Suddenly a sight met my gaze
which sent a wave of exultation over
me.
"Look!" I cried. "Men of the Slack
Pirates, look!"
For an instant the fighting ceased,
and with one accord every eye turned
in the direction I had Indicated, and
the sight they saw was one no man of
the Black Pirutes had ever Imagined
could be.
Across tho gardens, from side to side,
stood a wavering line of black war-
! rlors, while beyond them and forcing
! them ever back was a great horde of
green warriors astride their mighty
thoats. And as we watched one fiercer
. and more grimly terrible than his fel
lows rodo forward from the rear, and
as ho came he shouted some fierce
command to bis terrible legion.
j It was Tars Tarkas, Jcddak of
Tbark, and as he couched his great
forty foot metal shod lance we saw
his warriors do likewise Then It was
that we interpreted his commaacj, ...
"Twenty yards now separated the
green men from the black line. An
other word from the great Tbark, and
with a wild and terrifying battlecry
tbe green warriors charged.
For a moment the black line held,
but only for a moment; then tbe fear
some beasts that bore equally terrible
riders passed completely through it
After them came utan upon utan of
red men. The green horde broke to
surround the temple. The red man
charged for the Interior, and then we
turned to continue our Interrupted bat
tle, but our foes bad vanished.
My first thought was of Dejah Ths
ris. Calling to Carthorla that I ha
found his mother, I started on ran
toward the chamber where I had left
her, with my boy close beside me.
After us came those of our little force
who had survived tbe bloody conflict.
The moment I entered tbe room I
saw that some one bad been there since
I had left A silk lay upon the floor.
It had not been there before.
There were also dagger and sev
eral metal ornaments strewn about, aa
though torn from their wearer In a
struggle; but, worst of all, the door
way leading to the pita where I bad
hidden my princess was ajar.
With a bound I waa before It and.
thrusting It open, rushed within. De
jah Thorls had vanished 1 I called her
name aloud again and again, but there
waa no response. I think In that In
tant I hovered upon the verge of In
sanity. I do not recall what I said or
did, but I know that for an instant I
was seized with tbe rage of a maniac,
"Issus!" I cried, "Issus! Where to
Issus? Search the temple for her, but
let no man harm her but John Carter!
Carthoris, where are the apartments
of Issus?"
'This way!" cried tho boy, and with.
out waiting to know that I bad beard
him be dashed off at breakneck speed
farther Into the bowels of the temple.
As fast as be went, however, I was
still beside him, urging him on to
greater speed.
At last we came to a great carved
door, and through this Carthoris dash
ed a foot ahead of me. Within we
came upon such a scene as.I had wit
nessed within the temple once before
the throne of Issus, surrounded by
reclining slaves and about It the ranks
of soldiery. j
We did not even give the men
chance to draw, so quickly were we
upon them. With a single cut I struck
down two In the front rank. And then
by tbe mere weight and momentum of
my body I rushed through the two re
maining ranks and sprang upon the
dais beside tbe carved sorapus throne.
Issus, a black, repulsive creature.
with nothing godlike about her, squat
ting there in terror, attempted to es
cape me and leaped Into a trap behind
her. But I was not to be outwitted
by any such pnltiy subterfuge. -
Before she bad half risen . I had
grasped her by tbe arm, and then as J
saw the gunrd starting to make a con
certed rush upon me from .all sides I
whipped out my dagger and, holding
it close to that vile breast, ordered
them to bait
"Back!" I cried to them. "Back l
The first black foot that is planted
upon this platform sends my dagger
into Issus' heart."
For an instant they hesitated. Then
an officer ordered them back, while
from the outer corridor there swept
Into the throne room at the heels of
my little party of sun-Ivors a full
thousand red men under Kantos Kan
and Hor Vastus.
"Where is Dejah Thorls?" I cried
to. tho thing wlthlu my bands.
For a moment her eyes roved wildly
about the scene beneath her. I think
that It took a moment for the true
condition to make any Impression upon
her sbo could not at first realize that
tho templo hnd fallen before the as
sault of men of the outer world. .
When she did there must have come,
too, a terrible realization of what, it
meant to her the loss of power, hu
miliation, the exposure of the fraud
and Imposture which she had for so
long played upon her own people.
There was Just one thing needed to
complete tho reality of the picture she
was seeing, and that was added by the
highest noble of her realm the high
priest of her religion the prime min
ister of her government
"Issus, goddess of death and of life
eternal," be cried, "rise In tho might
of they righteous wrath and with one
single wave of thy omnipotent hand
strlko dend the blasphemers! Let not
one escape.
"Issus, thy people depend upon thee.
Daughter of the lesser moon, thou
only art all powerful. Thou only
canst savo thy people. I am done
We await thy will. Strike!"
And then It was that sho went mad
A screaming, gibbering maniac wrlth
ed In my grasp, it bit and clawed and
scratched In Impotent fury. And then
It hiugbed a weird and terrible laugh
ter that froze the blood.
CHAPTER XVI. .
The Burning Tempi.
mllE slave girls upon the dais
shrieked and cowered away.
And the thing Jumped at them
and guushed Its teeth.
l inally I shook the thing, hoping to
recall it for a moment to rationality.
"Where is Dejuh Thorls?" I cried.
Tho awful creature In my grasp
mumbled Inarticulately for a moment
then a sudden gleam of cunning shot
Into thoso hideous, closo set eyes.
"Dejah Thorls? Dejnh Thorls?" and
then that shrill, unearthly laugh
pierced our ears onco more. "Yes, De
jah Thorls, I know. And Tbuvln also.
They each love John Carter, Ha-ah
but It is drolL . . J
(Concluded Next Week.)