The first momentary shock of terror over, the girl released her
grasp upon the Englishman's arm. "Cannot we do something?" she
asked. "Cannot we help him before the beast kills him?"
The Englishman looked upon the ground for some missile with which
to attack the panther and then the girl uttered an exclamation and
started at a run toward the hut. "Wait there," she called over her
shoulder. "I will fetch the spear that he left me."
Smith-Oldwick saw the raking talons of the panther searching for
the flesh of the man and the man on his part straining every muscle
and using every artifice to keep his body out of range of them. The
muscles of his arms knotted under the brown hide. The veins stood
out upon his neck and forehead as with ever-increasing power he
strove to crush the life from the great cat. The ape-man's teeth
were fastened in the back of Sheeta's neck and now he succeeded
in encircling the beast's torso with his legs which he crossed and
locked beneath the cat's belly. Leaping and snarling, Sheeta sought
to dislodge the ape-man's hold upon him. He hurled himself upon
the ground and rolled over and over. He reared upon his hind legs
and threw himself backwards but always the savage creature upon
his back clung tenaciously to him, and always the mighty brown arms
crushed tighter and tighter about his chest.
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