company, began to reflect upon the strange beast which I had wounded but a

short distance back in the darkness, and suggested that we ascertain, by

the flashlight's aid, what manner of creature was my victim. Accordingly I

retraced my steps, this time with a courage born of companionship, to the

scene of my terrible experience. Soon we descried a white object upon the

floor, an object whiter even than the gleaming limestone itself.

Cautiously advancing, we gave vent to a simultaneous ejaculation of

wonderment, for of all the unnatural monsters either of us had in our

lifetimes beheld, this was in surpassing degree the strangest. It appeared

to be an anthropoid ape of large proportions, escaped, perhaps, from some

itinerant menagerie. Its hair was snow-white, a thing due no doubt to the

bleaching action of a long existence within the inky confines of the cave,

but it was also surprisingly thin, being indeed largely absent save on the

head, where it was of such length and abundance that it fell over the

shoulders in considerable profusion. The face was turned away from us, as

the creature lay almost directly upon it. The inclination of the limbs was

very singular, explaining, however, the alternation in their use which I

bad before noted, whereby the beast used sometimes all four, and on other

occasions but two for its progress. From the tips of the fingers or toes,

long rat-like claws extended. The hands or feet were not prehensile, a

fact that I ascribed to that long residence in the cave which, as I before