Story of the Phantom by Lee Falk Page B

searching trunk that would dash him to the ground beneath the huge feet. And the elephant did all it knew to dislodge this being on its back. It rolled off

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    the grass, and on its back. And the Phantom hopped off and on again as it climbed back to its feet.
    And when his chance came, he passed the vine between the big jaws and pulled it so that it was tight inside the great mouth and thrice fastened it so it would not be dislodged. Then, holding the loose ends, he quickly tied them around a huge wide tree, and lo and behold, the elephant was caught! For the mouth of this great beast was as tender as a baby, and as he tugged, the tough vine bit into the soft flesh, and he was helpless.

    And the Phantom looked up at the trees and shouted to the watchers above, saying, "I have done the deed. I have captured the elephant without weapons." And they shouted down from the treetops, saying it was true. And the warriors of the Rope People grasped their spears and slid down the long ropes to the ground, for they prized the flesh of the elephant, and it was rare that they could satisfy their hunger, and now they would kill it and eat it. But before they could reach the beast, the Phantom had loosened the vine so that it was free, and the beast charged off into the bush. The Rope people cried in anger at him. "Why did you do that? Why did you free the elephant that we wished to slaughter and eat?"

    "I agreed to capture it. I did not agree to kill it," said the Phantom. And even in their anger, they had to say that it was true.

    Now, they led him to the second task. On a small hill there was a huge boulder partly buried in the earth. The warriors said, "If you are the Phantom you can move this as you did before." And he was perplexed, for this was a huge rock indeed.

    ("As big as a small house," said the Twentieth, as Kit stared at him with wide eyes. "I was perplexed.
    I knew my father was a man of unusual strength. But how had he moved that?") Perplexed, he studied the great boulder, and indeed it was larger than any man or any ten men could lift. And the girl and her old father watched from high in the sky, and they were afraid, for it was a long fall to the ground, as from a cloud. And the warriors watched and grinned at each other, for if he failed, then he was not the Phantom, but an imposter. As he studied the boulder, he had an idea. He began to dig in the earth around the boulder. It was packed down hard, but he dug and dug with his hands like an anteater at an ant mound. And the hours passed. There were smaller rocks pressing against the boulder, and he removed them and dug deeper, throwing the dirt on either side until the great boulder was uncovered. Then he Went behind it and pushed. He pushed and pushed. But though the boulder was on the slope of the little hill, it did not move. And his time was growing short.
    Then he lay on his back and put his feet against the boulder, and pushed. And he pushed. And the boulder moved, a little, then a little more, and more, until it rolled down the hill, smashing into a large tree and knocking it to the ground.

    ("A man's legs are stronger than his arms," said his father to Kit, who sat completely enthralled.) He turned to the watching warriors and said, "I have moved the boulder." And they had to say that this was true. Now the time had come for the third task, and dozens of warriors came down the long ropes with their weapons. Now they told him, "Our war party will hunt you until sunset, and you must escape us. If we find you, we will kill you, for you have no arms. You will hide now and we will not watch until the sound of the drums. Then our search begins," and they turned their backs and he ran into the bush. It was like a children's game of hide and seek, but this was no game for him and could end in his death. And the old man and the girl watched from high above, and they were afraid, for it was a long fall to the ground, as from a cloud.

    He raced among the bushes until