I am no weakling--and never have been. My experi-ence in the hard

life of the inner world has turned my thews to steel. Even such

giants as Ghak the Hairy One have praised my strength; but to it

is added another quality which they lack--science.

The man upon me held me down awkwardly, leaving me many openings--one

of which I was not slow in taking advantage of, so that almost

before the fellow knew that I was awake I was upon my feet with

my arms over his shoulders and about his waist and had hurled him

heavily over my head to the hard rubble of the beach, where he lay

quite still.

In the instant that I arose I had seen the hyaenodon lying asleep

beside a boulder a few yards away. So nearly was he the color of

the rock that he was scarcely discernible. Evidently the newcomers

had not seen him.

I had not more than freed myself from one of my antagonists before

the other three were upon me. They did not work silently now, but

charged me with savage cries--a mistake upon their part. The fact

that they did not draw their weapons against me convinced me that

they desired to take me alive; but I fought as desper-ately as if

death loomed immediate and sure.

The battle was short, for scarce had their first wild whoop

reverberated through the rocky fiord, and they had closed upon me,

than a hairy mass of demoniacal rage hurtled among us.

It was the hyaenodon!

In an instant he had pulled down one of the men, and with a single

shake, terrier-like, had broken his neck. Then he was upon another.

In their efforts to vanquish the wolf-dog the savages forgot all

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