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up over the brow of the white cliff, and lay watching by a rabbit-warren
until the rabbits came out to play. There were no men thereabouts, and
the rabbits were heedless. He threw a smiting-stone he had made and got
a kill.
That night they made a fire from flint sparks and bracken fronds, and
talked and caressed by it. And in their sleep Uya's spirit came again,
and suddenly, while Ugh-lomi was trying to fight vainly, the foolish
flint on the stick came into his hand, and he struck Uya with it, and
behold! it killed him. But afterwards came other dreams of Uya--for
spirits take a lot of killing, and he had to be killed again. Then after
that the stone would not keep on the stick. He awoke tired and rather
gloomy, and was sulky all the forenoon, in spite of Eudena's kindliness,
and instead of hunting he sat chipping a sharp edge to the singular
flint, and looking strangely at her. Then he bound the perforated flint
on to the stick with strips of rabbit skin. And afterwards he walked up
and down the ledge, striking with it, and muttering to himself, and
thinking of Uya. It felt very fine and heavy in the hand.
Several days, more than there was any counting in those days, five days,
it may be, or six, did Ugh-lomi and Eudena stay on that shelf in the
gorge of the river, and they lost all fear of men, and their fire burnt
redly of a night. And they were very merry together; there was food
every day, sweet water, and no enemies. Eudena's knee was well in a
couple of days, for those ancient savages had quick-healing flesh.
Indeed, they were very happy.
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