“Hold!” he growled. “I will go with you. Man’s flesh would be a welcome change. There will be enough left for you when the carcass grows cold. Stay here, my dear,” he said to the Lioness. “You and the Wolf can have the Ape Boy for your portion—when he returns.”
The Hyena who had been listening to his master’s bidding with a thwarted hang-dog air suddenly raised his head and began sniffing vigorously in all directions. Finally his twitching nose pointed towards the grotto and held still. His ears stood erect. He burst into an uproarious mirthless laugh:
“Hee-hee, ha-ha, wah-ho!” The other three animals looked around to seek the cause of his hilarity and were amazed to see the head of a rhinoceros protruding from the mouth of the grotto.
A scene of wild confusion followed. Grun Waugh sprang snarling to his feet while the Lioness made ready to dash in when he gave the signal.
The Rhinoceros saw in a moment that he was the surprise of the party; that his presence was neither welcome nor expected. He settled back again into his refuge, with horn lowered, legs squared and fully prepared to give a good account of himself.
Grun Waugh Sprang Snarling to His Feet
Grun Waugh snarled angrily as he observed how securely the Rhinoceros was placed. No way to overpower him by numbers. The grotto protected his flanks and rear. His horn guarded the entrance. The matter was one requiring serious thought. He ceased snarling. To him, the Woolly Rhinoceros was a well-known character; an animal to be treated with the utmost caution and respect. He closed his jaws so that Wulli’s suspicions might be lulled by the concealment of red mouth and threatening teeth. His great claws withdrew into their sheath-pads. In a twinkle, the Cave Lion, according to his own ideas, was transformed into a lamb; but his tail writhed and squirmed—a fact which had not escaped Wulli’s notice. Beasts with squirming tails were not to be trusted.
“Prrr, prr, prr: there stands our old neighbor the Woolly Rhinoceros,” he purred in his most friendly manner. “I never knew you could climb mountains. How did you get here?”