Chapter 31 to civilization

They traveled another month, and came to the mouth of a great, wide river.There were a few buildings on the bank of the river, and Tarzan saw many boats and many people, and his heart was filled with the fear he had developed in the jungle when he saw people. Gradually he got used to the strange noises and eccentric ways of life in civilized society.It didn't take long for anyone to think that this beautiful Frenchman, who was dressed in spotless canvas clothes and always liked to talk and laugh with them, was naked two months ago, swinging branches towards him in the virgin forest. The prey swoops down, filling his bestial belly with raw flesh.

A month ago, Tarzan had thrown aside the knife and fork with contempt when eating, but now he used it with the chic and graceful manner of a well-trained D'Arnot. Although Tarzan the Ape is like a clever schoolboy, in order to transform him into an educated and civilized person, the Frenchman D'Arnault still makes unremitting efforts to at least make him decent in every aspect of behavior and speech. "God made you a civilized person in the depths of your heart, my friend," D'Arnot once said, "so on the surface, we have to make his 'masterpiece' look like it!"

As soon as they arrived at the small seaport, D'Arnot sent a telegram to the French government, stating that he was safe and asking for a three-month leave of absence, which granted his request. He also sent a telegram to the bank, asking them to wire a sum of money, but it took a month to get the cash.Both Tarzan and D'Arnot were unhappy about this.Because they couldn't hire a boat to go back to the jungle of Mount Tai immediately and retrieve the box of treasure. During their stay in this seaside town, Mr. Tarzan was regarded by both white and black as a strange man.Because several things happened during this period that were simply insignificant in Taishan's eyes.

Once, a big black man got too drunk and went on a rampage all over the town, frightening people.He didn't come to his senses until the "bad star" led him to the French "black-haired giant" who was sitting lazily in the corridor of the hotel. The negro, brandishing a knife in his hand, climbed the wide hotel steps, and charged at the four men who were drinking aiju at a table. The four people screamed in fright and ran away.The eyes of the black man fell on Tarzan. With a loud roar, he pounced on the "man-ape".Forty or fifty travelers hid behind windows and doors, and poked their heads out, as if they were about to witness the poor Frenchman being murdered by the Negroes.

Tarzan took on the black giant with the smile that had always brought him the joy of fighting. When the black man raised his knife and rushed forward, Tarzan stretched out his muscular iron palm and grabbed his wrist. With a slight twist, his arm broke.The hand was like a worn glove, and Chara was on the wrist. The black man was in pain and frightened, and his alcoholism subsided.Tai Shan calmly sat down, the fellow screamed in pain, and frantically headed towards the village where the natives lived. Another time, Tarzan and D'Arnot had dinner with some white men, and the topic was about lions and hunting lions.

They disputed whether the king of beasts was brave or not.Some thought the lion was an out-and-out coward, but a few others said that a loaded pistol was in one's hand to feel safe when the tyrant of the jungle roared about the camp at night. D'Arnot and Taishan had already agreed to keep his past secret. No one, therefore, knew except the French officer's knowledge of his familiarity with the animals of the forest. "Mr. Tarzan hasn't commented yet," said a traveler. "A brave man like Mr. Qinshan lived in Africa for a while, so he must have dealt with lions, right?"

"It's been a little bit." Dai Shan said coldly, "I just know that everyone's judgments on lions are somewhat reasonable.But people might think all niggers are like that because they only saw the black person messing around last week, or say white people are cowards because they've seen a white coward. "Gentlemen, just as we ourselves are all different, so are the lower animals. Today we may meet a lion that is surprisingly timid and runs away from everyone. Tomorrow we may meet its 'uncle' , 'cousin', but my friends said in amazement: 'Why did he go into the jungle and never return?' As for me, I always think that lions are very fierce, so I never let down my vigilance."

The person who first brought up the subject retorted: 'It's not much fun to hunt if one's legs go limp at the sight of prey. " D'Arnot laughed, thinking to himself: "Tarzan will be afraid? Really!" "I don't quite understand what you mean by weak legs," said Tarzan. "Like a lion, fear means different things to different people. But for me, the only joy in the hunt is that I know it's like I have enough strength to kill the game, and it has enough strength to hurt me. If I go to catch a lion with two rifles, a gunner, and twenty or thirty hunting assistants, I will feel Like hunting, the enjoyment of hunting is minimized as the sense of security increases."

"So, Mr. Taishan is willing to go naked and take only a hunting knife to kill the king of beasts?" Another person said kindly, but not without irony. "And a rope," Tarzan added. Just at this time, a lion roared in the jungle in the distance, as if challenging people to see who would dare to compete with it. "Look, here is your chance to show your talents, Mr. Taishan." Those people deliberately teased him. "I'm not hungry yet," Tarzan said bluntly. Everyone except D'Arnot laughed.Only he knew that what Taishan said was the truth of the beast.

"You are like all of us. You don't dare to go naked and fight lions in the jungle with just a knife and a rope." The person who teased him said, "Is that so?" "Bet," said another man, "if you can bring back a lion from the forest with no clothes, a knife, and a rope, on the terms we have agreed upon, I will offer you five thousand francs." .” Tarzan glanced at D'Arnot and nodded. "Ten thousand!" said D'Arnot. "Okay!" replied the man. Tarzan stood up. "I've got to undress somewhere on the outskirts of town, so that if it's daylight I can come back and not walk down the street naked."

"Aren't you going now?" exclaimed the bettor. "Will you wait till evening?" "Why not?" asked Tarzan. "The male lion only comes out at night, so it is easier to meet him at that time." "Don't go at night," said another, "I don't want your blood on my hands. You'd be foolish enough to go in broad daylight!" "I'm going now," replied Tarzan, and went to his chambers to get his hunting knife and noose. People walked with him to the edge of the jungle, and he undressed in a small warehouse. But when he was about to walk into the dark bushes, he was urged by all, and the bettors, to give up this reckless venture. "I admit that you won, and ten thousand francs are yours. If you want to go, you can only die." Taishan laughed and disappeared into the dense jungle in the blink of an eye. The people stood silently for a while, then turned and walked slowly towards the hotel. As soon as Taishan entered the dense forest, he jumped onto the tree.He felt like a fish in water, feeling a great freedom, swinging the branches again, walking through the trees. Ah, such is life!He loves this life.The civilized world is densely populated and full of restrictions. Everything is imprisoned by stereotypes and rules. How can it compare with the freedom here!Even the clothes are a burden and annoy him. He felt he was free at last!He forgot what kind of prisoner he was once! From here it was easy to come back to the jungle, and his hut, around the coast and south again. Suddenly he smelled Numa the lion, for he was walking against the wind.In a short while, his sharp ears heard the familiar rustling of elastic claws on the ground, and the sacrificial rustling of that huge, smooth-furred body passing through the bushes. Silently, Tarzan approached the unsuspecting behemoth until he reached a small gap where the moonlight melted between the branches and leaves. Then, he raised his arm lightly, and the noose was tightly wrapped around the lion's tawny neck.As he had done a hundred times before, Tarzan tied the rope in a knot in a thick branch; and while the beast struggled desperately to free itself from the noose, Tarzan jumped from the tree, and again He jumped up, rode on the lion's broad back, and stabbed it more than a dozen times in one breath, aiming at its heart. Then he stepped on Numa's body, opened his voice, uttered a terrifying cry, and "sang" the triumphant song of his barbaric tribe. For a split second, Tarzan stood hesitant, full of conflicting feelings—loyalty to Dianot and longing for freedom in his own jungle.In the end, it was the girl's beautiful smiling face and the imprint of her warm lips on his lips that broke his fascination with the old life. The "human ape" carried Numa's hot body on his shoulders, and jumped up the towering tree. The group sat in the corridor for about an entire hour without saying a word. They tried to talk about other topics, but they couldn't succeed, and they were too heavy to carry on the conversation. "By God!" said the bettor at last, "I can't stand it any longer. I'm going to take my guns to the jungle and get the madman back!" "I'll go with you!" said another. "I'm going too! I'm going too!" Everyone said in unison. As if this suggestion had awakened them from a dreadful nightmare, they all hurried back to their respective rooms, and presently, armed to the teeth, set out for the jungle. At this time, Taishan's cry came faintly from the jungle.An Englishman among those who were looking for him, hearing this terrible roar, exclaimed: "My God, what's that sound?" "I've heard such a call before." A Biliese said, "It was in a mountain where gorillas were infested. The porter told me that it was a kind of giant ape that cheered victory after killing its prey." cry." D'Arnot remembered that Clayton once told him that Tarzan made such a terrible cry when he announced his victory, and couldn't help laughing secretly, even though he thought that this creepy cry came from his good friend throat, and a kind of fear could not help but grow in my heart. When this group of people finally stood beside the dense forest, arguing about the best plan for allocating troops, they were startled by a burst of low-pitched laughter not far away. Turning their heads hastily, they saw a tall figure walking towards them, carrying a dead lion on its broad shoulders. Even D'Arnot was taken aback.For it seemed to him that a man would never have killed a lion so quickly with such a simple weapon, nor could he have carried a dead body of such size through a jungle of tangled leaves and tangled vines to appear in front of everyone. Everyone gathered around Taishan to ask questions, but his only answer was a hehe laugh, indicating that his unique skill is not worth mentioning. For Tarzan, it is as ridiculous as people praising a butcher as a hero because he killed a cow.Because in order to hunt for food or protect himself, he often kills lions, which is really commonplace for him. But in the eyes of this group of people who are used to hunting, he is indeed a hero. As for the ten thousand francs he certainly won.Diano will insist that he take all the money, not a penny. For Taishan, this is of course a very important sum of money.He was just beginning to realize the hidden power behind this little piece of metal, that little piece of paper.He found that if people want to ride in a car, eat, sleep, dress, drink, work, entertain, or even find a place to shelter from the wind and rain and the sun, they have to take out this thing and stuff it into someone else's hands . From Taishan's point of view, it is obvious that there is only one death without money.D'Arnot once told him not to worry about money.Because he has money that two people can't spend.But Taishan has understood many truths.One of them is that people look down on people who live on handouts. Not long after the pig-lion episode, D'Arnot finally rented an old sailboat, and was going to sail along the coast, looking for the harbor blocked by the headland of Mount Tai. It was a happy morning for both of them as the sailboat weighed anchor and headed out to sea. They made it all the way to the beach safely.On the second morning when anchored in the harbor in front of the hut, Tarzan was "clothed" as before, and ran to the jungle, to the "little stage" where the apes often gather-the treasure is hidden there. He came back the next afternoon with the big box on his shoulders.As the sun rose, the boat sailed out of the port and began its journey north. Three weeks later, Tarzan and D'Arnot were passengers on a French steamer bound for Lyon.After staying in Lyon for a few days, D'Arnot brought Tarzan to Paris. Taishan was anxious to go to the United States, but D'Arnot insisted on letting him go to Paris with him first.As for why he had to go to Paris first, he kept it secret. After arriving in Paris, the first thing D'Arnot did was to take Taishan to meet an old friend of his, a senior official of the police station. D'Arnot very cleverly brought the topic bit by bit to a method of identifying criminals that is currently popular.The police officer explained it in detail to the interested Taishan. Taishan showed great interest in the wonderful knowledge of fingerprints. He asked: "If after a few years the old skin on the hand wears off and a new layer grows, and the lines on the fingers are completely changed, what's the point of the previous fingerprints? " "Fingerprints will never change. Except for the slight changes in the ring-shaped lines and scroll-shaped lines due to injuries, the changes in fingerprints from birth to death are only different in size, and there is no difference in shape. Therefore, if A person who has fingerprints on both thumbs and the other four fingers can never be confused." "This is very strange," D'Arnot exclaimed. "I don't know what my fingerprints look like." "You'll see it right away," replied the officer.He rang the bell, called the assistant, and gave some instructions. The man walked out of the house, came back after a while, and put a hardwood box in his hand on the police officer's desk. "Now," said the inspector, "you can see your fingerprints in less than a second." From the small box he took out a square glass, a small glass tube for absorbing ink, a rubber roller, and a few sheets of snow-white cardboard. He put a drop of ink on the glass and rolled it back and forth several times with the rubber roller until a thin, even layer of blue remained on the glass. "Put the four fingers of your right hand on the glass, so...," he said to D'Arnot, "and the thumb. Good. Now press the fingers on the cardboard as before, and here... A little bit to the right. We must leave room for the thumb and the fingers of the left hand. Well, yes. Here, bring the left hand over." "Come, Tarzan, let's see what your fingerprints look like." D'Arnot said to Tarzan. Tarzan happily followed suit, asking the officer many questions in the meantime. "Can fingerprints reveal a person's racial characteristics?" he asked. "For example, can fingerprints alone tell whether a person is black or white?" "You can't see it," replied the inspector. "Can you tell the fingerprints of an ape from those of a human?" "Of course it can. Because the fingerprints of apes are much simpler than those of higher animals." "Can the fingerprints of a hybrid born of an ape and a human show the characteristics of both parents?" Taishan continued to ask. "Yes, I think so," replied the inspector, "but science has not yet developed to determine such things with certainty. I myself am only interested in identifying people by fingerprints. That is absolutely true. There has never been No two people have the same fingerprint. No two fingerprints are the same, unless it's the same finger at different times." "Does this kind of identification take a long time and take a lot of effort?" D'Arnot asked. "If the fingerprints are clear, it usually doesn't take long." D'Arnot took out a black leather diary from his pocket and flipped through the pages one by one. Tai Shan looked at it in surprise, how did his notebook fall into the hands of Di Arnott? After a while, D'Arnot turned to the page he was looking for.There are five little finger prints on it. He handed the notebook to the police officer. "Do you think these fingers are the same as mine, or are they the same as Mr. Tarzan's, or are they someone else's fingerprints?" The police officer picked up a magnifying glass with a high magnification from the desk, carefully examined the three types of fingerprints, and made various marks on a pad at the same time. Taishan suddenly understood D'Arnault's intention of bringing him to the police officer. The answers to the mysteries of his life lie in those little marks. He was sitting in the chair, his nerves were so tense that he couldn't help leaning forward.But he suddenly relaxed, smiling and leaning back in the chair. D'Arnot looked at him in surprise. "You forgot, the child who pressed these handprints has long since died. His body has been lying in his father's hut for twenty years. And since I walked into that hut, I have been seeing that skeleton lying there ’” Taishan said, his voice full of bitterness. The officer looked up in amazement. "You continue to judge, Sheriff." D'Arnot said, "I will tell you this story later-if Mr. Tarzan agrees." Tarzan nodded. "But you're crazy, dear D'Arnot." He still insisted on his opinion. "Those little fingers are already buried on the west coast of Africa." "I don't care, Tarzan," D'Arnot replied, "it might be possible. But if you're not John Clayton's son, how can you run into that God-forsaken jungle? You Should know, except John Clayton. No other white man left a footprint there. " "You forgot... and Kara," Tarzan said. "I didn't think about her at all," D'Arnot replied. The two friends walked up to the French windows and looked down at the boulevard below as they talked.For a moment they stood staring at the throng of people in the street, each thinking of his own thoughts. "It seems that it will take some time to identify the fingerprints." D'Arnot thought to himself, turning to look at the police officer. To his great surprise, he saw the police officer leaning on the back of the chair, looking at the diary written in the little black book. D'Arnot coughed.The officer looked up, caught his eye, and held up a finger to silence him. D'Arnot looked out the window again, and after a while, the police officer spoke. "Gentlemen," he said. Both Tarzan and D'Arnot turned to him. "This matter is obviously very important. For accuracy, it will have to be compared and differentiated on different scales. Therefore, I ask you both to leave these things here for a while, and wait for our expert Deskook in a few days. We'll make a conclusion when you come back, sir." "I hope to find out soon," said D'Arnot. "Mr. Tarzan leaves for America tomorrow." "I assure you, within two weeks you'll be able to wire him the result," replied the sergeant. "It's hard for me to say why now. Kind of like that. But . . . Mr. Skulk take care of it."