Captured by Apes; or, How Philip Garland Became King of Apeland

by Harry Prentice

To remain there longer would undoubtedly be to find himself in the power of his former chattel. In such case, what revenge might not the gigantic baboon take? If the chimpanzees remembered him so well, Goliah’s memory would hardly be less retentive, and the floggings so often administered might be repaid with compound interest.

It seemed that Alice understood this as well as did Philip, for on her face were the liveliest expressions of terror, and she plucked at his coat-sleeve trying to draw him away, while pointing toward the forest from whence came the hoarse cries.

There was no longer any time for hesitation, and trusting himself implicitly to the guidance of the chimpanzee, Philip followed, the two passing the rear of the cages just as the baboon went by in front to visit the prisoner.

Not an ape was to be seen on the principal street of the village, and as they walked past the buildings Philip had an opportunity of examining their condition.

What at a distance appeared to be a collection of neat cottages proved, on closer inspection, to be hardly more than ruins. The windows of the houses were broken, the frames splintered, and the greater portion wrenched entirely out of their casings. From the second stories, hanging on long poles, were torn uniforms, cravats, boots, belts, hats, empty bottles, trousers, towels, rags of all colors, shirts, and even a few flags. The paint was defaced, the fences were torn down, and everywhere on the ground were scattered bones, fragments of glass and crockery, and tins which once contained canned meats or vegetables. In several places where crops had been growing could now be seen only dried stalks. The chicken-coops, which were attached to nearly every dwelling, had been wrecked, and the feathers scattered here and there told the fate of their occupants.

It was a scene of pillage and waste such as would have shamed the hangers-on of any army, however demoralized; and Philip, now hardly more than a fugitive, thought with dismay of those who had probably met their death while trying to found this colony. Never since the shipwreck had he been so thoroughly dispirited, and but for the constant tugging of the chimpanzee at his garments he might have lingered until it would be no longer possible to escape. She literally pulled him along through the tiny village until the seclusion of the thicket was gained, when her movements became more leisurely, and he understood that there was no longer any necessity for such rapid flight.

Probably because the chimpanzee believed they were safe for the time being from Goliah, and that her companion did not require such careful watching, she took the lead, proceeding through the jungle about an eighth of a mile to a large banana-grove, where she began to search for fruit.

Here, as at the village, were the same evidences of wanton destruction. The long leaves of the plants were torn and trampled, bunches of half-eaten fruit lay decaying upon the ground, and that which had cost no slight amount of both time and money was almost entirely destroyed.

After some search the chimpanzee succeeded in finding two clusters of the rich, yellow fruit, and motioning Philip to pluck them, she pointed toward the east, as if intimating the direction in which they must travel.