"We are friends," he cried. "I am Ja-don, Chief of Ja-lur. I and my warriors lay our foreheads upon the feet of Dor-ul-Otho and pray that he will aid us in our righteous fight with Lu-don, the high priest." "You have not defeated him yet?" asked Tarzan. "Why I thought you would be king of Pal-ul-don long before this." "No," replied Ja-don. "The people fear the high priest and now that he has in the temple one whom he claims to be Jad-ben-Otho many of my warriors are afraid. If they but knew that the Dor-ul-Otho had returned and that he had blessed the cause of Ja-don I am sure that victory would be ours." Tarzan thought for a long minute and then he spoke. "Ja-don," he said, "was one of the few who believed in me and who wished to accord me fair treatment. I have a debt to pay to Ja-don and an account to settle with Lu-don, not alone on my own behalf, but principally upon that of my mate. I will go with you Ja-don to mete to Lu-don the punishment he deserves. Tell me, chief, how may the Dor-ul-Otho best serve his father's people?" "By coming with me to Ja-lur and the villages between," replied Ja-don quickly, "that the people may see that it is indeed the Dor-ul-Otho and that he smiles upon the cause of Ja-don." "You think that they will believe in me more now than before?" asked the ape-man. "Who will dare doubt that he who rides upon the great GRYF is less than a god?" returned the old chief. "And if I go with you to the battle at A-lur," asked Tarzan, "can you assure the safety of my mate while I am gone from her?" "She shall remain in Ja-lur with the Princess O-lo-a and my own women," replied Ja-don. "There she will be safe for there I shall leave trusted warriors to protect them. Say that you will come, O Dor-ul-Otho, and my cup of happiness will be full, for even now Ta-den, my son, marches toward A-lur with a force from the northwest and if we can attack, with the Dor-ul-Otho at our head, from the northeast our arms should be victorious." "It shall be as you wish, Ja-don," replied the ape-man; "but first you must have meat fetched for my GRYF." "There are many carcasses in the camp above," replied Ja-don, "for my men have little else to do than hunt." "Good," exclaimed Tarzan. "Have them brought at once." And when the meat was brought and laid at a distance the ape-man slipped from the back of his fierce charger and fed him with his own hand. "See that there is always plenty of flesh for him," he said to Ja-don, for he guessed that his mastery might be short-lived should the vicious beast become over-hungry. It was morning before they could leave for Ja-lur, but Tarzan found the GRYF lying where he had left him the night before beside the carcasses of two antelope and a lion; but now there was nothing but the GRYF. "The paleontologists say that he was herbivorous," said Tarzan as he and Jane approached the beast.