may you avert the most unpleasant consequences to your wife and
child, and at the same time retain your own life and regain your
liberty."

"What is the amount?" asked Tarzan. "And what assurance have I
that you will live up to your end of the agreement? I have little
reason to trust two such scoundrels as you and Rokoff, you know."

The Russian flushed.

"You are in no position to deliver insults," he said. "You have
no assurance that we will live up to our agreement other than my
word, but you have before you the assurance that we can make short
work of you if you do not write out the cheque we demand.

"Unless you are a greater fool than I imagine, you should know
that there is nothing that would give us greater pleasure than to
order these men to fire. That we do not is because we have other
plans for punishing you that would be entirely upset by your death."

"Answer one question," said Tarzan. "Is my son on board this ship?"

"No," replied Alexis Paulvitch, "your son is quite safe elsewhere;
nor will he be killed until you refuse to accede to our fair demands.
If it becomes necessary to kill you, there will be no reason for
not killing the child, since with you gone the one whom we wish to
punish through the boy will be gone, and he will then be to us only
a constant source of danger and embarrassment. You see, therefore,
that you may only save the life of your son by saving your own,
and you can only save your own by giving us the cheque we ask."