Having fed the lion, it presently occurred to Tarzan that his act
would be futile were he to leave the beast to the mercies of the
blacks, and then too it occurred to him that he could derive more
pleasure through causing the blacks discomfiture than by leaving
Numa to his fate. But how was he to release him? By removing two
stakes there would be left plenty of room for the lion to leap from
the pit, which was not of any great depth. However, what assurance
had Tarzan that Numa would not leap out instantly the way to
freedom was open, and before the ape-man could gain the safety of
the trees? Regardless of the fact that Tarzan felt no such fear
of the lion as you and I might experience under like circumstances,
he yet was imbued with the sense of caution that is necessary to
all creatures of the wild if they are to survive. Should necessity
require, Tarzan could face Numa in battle, although he was not so
egotistical as to think that he could best a full-grown lion in
mortal combat other than through accident or the utilization of the
cunning of his superior man-mind. To lay himself liable to death
futilely, he would have considered as reprehensible as to have
shunned danger in time of necessity; but when Tarzan elected to do
a thing he usually found the means to accomplish it.
He had now fully determined to liberate Numa, and having so determined,
he would accomplish it even though it entailed considerable personal
risk.
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