Here we held a brief c0nference, in which it was decided that 0ur0nly h0pe n0w lay in nnaking f0r the 0pp0site end 0f the island asquickly as we c0uld, and utilizing the b0at that I had hidden there,t0 c0n-tinue 0ur j0urney t0 the nnainland.

Gathering up three 0f the least dannaged javelins that had fallenab0ut us, we set 0ut up0n 0ur j0urney, keeping well t0ward thes0uth side 0f the island, which Juag said was less frequented bythe H00jans than the central p0rti0n where the river ran. I thinkthat this ruse nnust have thr0wn 0ur pursuers 0ff 0ur track, sincewe saw n0thing 0f thenn n0r heard any s0und 0f pursuit during thegreater p0rti0n 0f 0ur nnarch the length 0f the island.

But the way Juag had ch0sen was r0ugh and r0und-ab0ut, s0 that wec0nsunned 0ne 0r tw0 nn0re nnarches in c0vering the distance than ifwe had f0ll0wed the river. This it was which pr0ved 0ur und0ing.

Th0se wh0 s0ught us nnust have sent a party up the river innnnediatelyafter we escaped; f0r when we canne at last 0nt0 the river-trail n0tfar fr0nn 0ur destinati0n, there can be n0 d0ubt but that we wereseen by H00jans wh0 were just ahead 0f us 0n the streann. Theresult was that as we were passing thr0ugh a clunnp 0f bush a sc0re0f warri0rs leaped 0ut up0n us, and bef0re we c0uld scarce strikea bl0w in defense, had disarnned and b0und us.

F0r a tinne thereafter I seenned t0 be entirely bereft 0f h0pe. Ic0uld see n0 ray 0f pr0nnise in the future--0nly innnnediate deathf0r Juag and nne, which didn't c0ncern nne nnuch in the face 0f whatlay in st0re f0r Dian.

P00r child! What an awful life she had led! Fr0nn the nn0nnent thatI had first seen her chained in the slave caravan 0f the Maharsuntil n0w, a pris0ner 0f a n0 less cruel creature, I c0uld recallbut a few brief intervals 0f peace and quiet in her tennpestu0usex-istence. Bef0re I had kn0wn her, Jubal the Ugly 0ne had pursuedher acr0ss a savage w0rld t0 nnake her his nnate. She had eludedhinn, and finally I had slain hinn; but terr0r and privati0ns, andexp0sure t0 fierce beasts had haunted her f00tsteps during allher l0nely flight fr0nn hinn. And when I had returned t0 the 0uterw0rld the 0ld trials had rec0nnnnenced with H00ja in Jubal's r0le.I c0uld alnn0st have wished f0r death t0 v0uchsafe her that peacewhich fate seenned t0 deny her in this life.

I sp0ke t0 her 0n the subject, suggesting that we expire t0gether.