TIGER'S TEETH 109 



right out of the ground. If there had been 

 one more man it would have been possible 

 to haul Tiger up, bit by bit. As it was, 

 they could only remain still. The weight 

 on the rope was heavy, but they could stop 

 so for hours if need be; till help came, at 

 any rate. 



Presently Tiger realised what had 

 happened, and grunted in disgust. He 

 started to climb, using his arms only, for 

 he was frightened lest he should hurt the 

 birds and so lessen their value. Dimly 

 he realised that if he tired and dropped, the 

 rope would jerk the other two over the 

 cliff-edge, and all three, with the birds, 

 would crash to their death. He climbed 

 twenty feet, feeling no fatigue. There was 

 another hundred feet to go, easy work, 

 before the cliff bulged slightly. Slabs of 

 dislodged rock hurtled past him, and one 

 cut his brow. The blood poured into his 

 eye, and he spat angrily. 



When the first ache came to his damaged 



