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.

Tales of Space and Time