Why do I enjoy the Tarzan books of Edgar Rice Burroughs? Partly, it’s gems such as this conclusion of Tarzan the Invincible:
“This man has a casket,” reported one of the warriors, “which he says contains The Father of Diamonds.”
“The true Father of Diamonds, which Herkuf just brought with him from Thobos,” said Chon, “rests here in its casket on the altar before me. There cannot be two. Let us have a look at what the man has in his casket.”
“No!” shrieked Alan Thorne. “Don’t open it! It is mine, and I have been waiting to open it in Paris. I shall buy all of Paris with it and be king of France!”
“Silence, mortal!” commanded Chon; then, very deliberately, he opened the casket, while the trembling Thorne stared with mad eyes at the contents — a small lump of coal. At sight of it, realizing what it was, Alan Thorne screamed, clutched his heart, and fell dead at the foot of the altar of the true god.
“For this false and accursed thing,” exclaimed Brian Gregory, “we have all suffered, and many have died; yet the irony of it is that it is, in truth, The Father of Diamonds.”
“Men are strange beasts,” said Tarzan.
altarsBurroughscoaldeathdiamondsGodTarzan
Strange Beasts
June 16, 2026
Language, Wisdom
No Comments
John Chappell
Why do I enjoy the Tarzan books of Edgar Rice Burroughs? Partly, it’s gems such as this conclusion of Tarzan the Invincible:
“This man has a casket,” reported one of the warriors, “which he says contains The Father of Diamonds.”
“The true Father of Diamonds, which Herkuf just brought with him from Thobos,” said Chon, “rests here in its casket on the altar before me. There cannot be two. Let us have a look at what the man has in his casket.”
“No!” shrieked Alan Thorne. “Don’t open it! It is mine, and I have been waiting to open it in Paris. I shall buy all of Paris with it and be king of France!”
“Silence, mortal!” commanded Chon; then, very deliberately, he opened the casket, while the trembling Thorne stared with mad eyes at the contents — a small lump of coal. At sight of it, realizing what it was, Alan Thorne screamed, clutched his heart, and fell dead at the foot of the altar of the true god.
“For this false and accursed thing,” exclaimed Brian Gregory, “we have all suffered, and many have died; yet the irony of it is that it is, in truth, The Father of Diamonds.”
“Men are strange beasts,” said Tarzan.
altarsBurroughscoaldeathdiamondsGodTarzan